Slytherin Forever! Book One: Blood Ties
by Taisha
Summary: CoS AU. Chapter eight up now! With a sympathetic Zeynep, Marita's arrogance, and with the Polyjuice incident.
1. Slytherin

**Title:** Slytherin Forever! Book One - Blood Ties.

**Author:** Kathryn Volcanov.

**Rating:** PG-13.

**Summary:** CoS AU. The Slytherin House did not always have a bad name... or a mark of evil wizards upon its banner. As Hogwarts stands at the beginning of dark times a small group of Slytherins search a way to restore their House to the glory and pride once associated with it. Virginia Weasley, a witch raised in a Gryffindor household, struggles with the power given to her when she starts her first year at Hogwarts... as a Slytherin.

**Disclaimer:** This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The plotline belongs to me, as well as any characters not found in JK Rowling's books. 

**Author Notes:** After a long and exhausting discussion with all of my editors we came to the conclusion that the first version of this story needed improvement. The storylines have changed greatly, and the original concept has been completely renewed in this version. I am pleased with the result and I hope that my loyal readers and reviewers will be able to see my growth as an author. 

I would like to thank everyone who reviewed the original version, especially Ayla Pascal and Poppy for their constructive criticism. Also, everyone over at the Gin 'n' Tonic thread in the Park deserves a hug for putting up with me through the good and the bad times. I'm sorry for not making this T/G, but I promise to you all that I will write another fic soon that actually supports the SHIP. 

A word of thanks goes out to Christie, Feran, and Venom. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart and I will never forget you for as long as I live. And finally to LoneWolf, a loyal T/G author and my beloved editor. No words can express the way I feel for you. I love you and I need you in more ways than I can ever say here. I guess you knew it, but I will say it to you for the first time now. Love doesn't hurt me when it comes from you. 

**~*~**

**Chapter One: Slytherin.**

**~*~**

_When you say it's gonna happen now_

_What exactly do you mean?_

See I've already waited too long 

_And all my hope is gone_

**- How Soon Is Now?, t.A.T.u.**

**~*~**

"Please wait quietly."

The stern witch who had introduced herself as Professor McGonagall left the chamber, and the first years began chatting quietly. Ginny looked around and smiled as she felt a jolt of happiness in her stomach. She was glad to have made it to Hogwarts, even though she was a bit worried about her brother Ron and Harry Potter because they had not boarded the train like everyone else. 

"How do they sort us into Houses?"

A black haired girl asked Ginny suddenly, dark eyes looking into Ginny's green ones questioningly. Ginny shrugged and said:

"My brothers told me it was some kind of test. Fred said you had to wrestle a troll, but I think he was joking."

"I hope he was. You'll be sending me home in a matchbox if it's true. I'm Natalya Cruz by the way."

"Ginny Weasley."

"You'll be in Gryffindor then," a blonde girl sighed. "Too bad, you seemed like good company. I'm Alisha Avery, and my whole family has been in Slytherin."

"My whole family are Gryffindors, true," Ginny said softly. "But blood connections don't mean anything, it's your personality that counts."

"I guess you're right."

Alisha whispered in Ginny's ear as McGonagall entered the room again and led them to the Great Hall. Ginny catched a glimpse of Fred and George on the way up to the High Table (they were bend over a piece of paper) and grinned as she heard a girl nearby whisper about the enchanted ceiling. Then her attention was drawn to the old and shabby Sorting Hat, who began to sing.

_Let me have a look in your head_

_I have never been wrong_

_Come up here and let me tell you_

_In which House you shall belong_

_Maybe you are a Hufflepuff_

_A loyal and hard-working friend_

_Forever supportive and just_

_They never take a wrong bend_

_When you are clever and witty_

_Ravenclaw is the place to be_

_This folk keen on learning_

_Open your eyes and make you see_

_Or perhaps a Slytherin_

_If you have a cunning mind_

_Ambition rules the words_

Of the ones you might call your kind 

_The last one is Gryffindor_

_Home to the brave and true_

Value friends above all means 

_And this is the place for you_

_Put me on, don't be afraid_

_You'll soon be gone_

_Off to join your housemates_

_When my job is done!_

Ginny clapped politely along with everyone else as the Sorting Hat finished. She would kill her brothers for making her nervous when all she had to do was try the Hat on. She noticed that McGonagall had unfolded the parchment and called for Daniel Ardwin to come forward. He was declared a Hufflepuff, which caused a cheer from the table on the right.

"Avery, Alisha!"

Alisha smiled at Ginny and Natalya for a moment before the Hat covered her eyes. It didn't take long to decide and Ginny was relieved to see that Alisha was pronounced a Slytherin. She was happy for her new friend who took her place at the table second on the right. Ginny let her mind wander for a while until she heard Natalya's name being called.

"SLYTHERIN!"

The Sorting Hat bellowed after a long silence, and Natalya joined Alisha. The rest of the Sorting was not interesting, so Ginny looked around until she heard her name fall. She put the Hat on and relaxed as she heard its voice in her ear.

"Another Weasley. Ravenclaw would be an option, you like to study I see, but you are not very motivated towards your studies. I suppose Hufflepuff would be a good choice, yes, but you are loyal only to those worthy of your trust. You like to have friends, and are quite brave even though you seem to think otherwise. Gryffindor would be the place for you, but there is something else... You are a little bit ambitious, aren't you? And cunning, oh yes. I know the right place for you now, my dear. It is where you belong deep in your heart...****SLYTHERIN!"

A stunned silence greeted Ginny as she pulled the Hat off her head. Natalya and Alisha started to clap, and soon some of the elder Slytherins cheered along with the other Slytherin first-years. Ginny had enough time to look over to the Gryffindor table when she walked to her housemates, and was surprised to see Percy and the twins glare at her. She swallowed and blinked back some tears before she greeted Alisha and Natalya with a grin.

Hendrick Wordt was the last person to be Sorted and after he was declared a Ravenclaw, Professor Dumbledore rose from his seat. Immediate silence fell in the Great Hall, and Ginny could not help but have a feeling of respect for the old man with the kind twinkle in his eyes.

"Now that our first-years have been Sorted, some with surprising results, it is my great pleasure to say you should all tuck in!"

As Dumbledore seated himself again the tables were filled with food of all kinds. Ginny now noticed how hungry she was and piled a load of food on her plate. Alisha raised an eyebrow and remarked:

"When you eat like that every day it is an absolute miracle that you aren't fat. How do you do it? I eat carrots like a rabbit and I still gain weight!"

"I don't eat this every day, but I am hungry now," Ginny said while chewing on a piece of meat. "I think gaining weight isn't a trait handed down in my family."

"That has to do with blood connections," Natalya added. "The Sorting was a personality test to see what you are really like, regardless of family ties. I'd be in Ravenclaw otherwise."

"And I'd be in Gryffindor," Ginny said tonelessly. "But I'm glad to be here, really."

"Slytherin is the only House I wanted to be in," another first-year called Marita Rosenir said. "My family won't be too happy though, seeing as most of them are Ravenclaws."

The talk about Houses continued for a while and Ginny thought more than once that Slytherins were not all bad like she had thought initially. She concentrated on her meal for a small period of time before Marita directed the talk towards families.

"I'm pure-blooded," Alisha said after Marita had declared herself a half-blood. "The Avery family's an understanding in the wizarding community. My sister works in Romania with dragons and the rest works with animals as well."

"Romania?" Ginny asked. "My brother Charlie works there with dragons too! And we are pure-bloods, but I think mum has a cousin or something who is an accountant in the Muggle world."

"I'm half-blooded," Natalya said softly. "When my parents were killed by followers of You-Know-Who another witch took me in."

"You don't know your parents at all then," Alisha stated. "You-Know-Who and his followers are rotten creatures."

"Absolutely."

Ginny confirmed Alisha's statement before turning her attention back to Dumbledore, who had rose from his seat once more. 

"All students should note that the Forbidden Forest is restricted. Third years and up will visit Hogsmeade at the end of this month. And now I am proud to introduce your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher: Professor Gilderoy Lockhart!"

A storm of applause filled the Great Hall as the blonde wizard rose and smiled at his 'audience'. Natalya looked at him in disbelief as he winked roguishly, while Alisha had put her head on the table and was muttering curses under her breath. Ginny noticed that most Slytherins remained silent during Lockhart's little show. 

"And now, off to bed! First-year students will follow the prefects to their common rooms."

Most students filed out of the Hall slowly and made their way to their dormitories. The first-year Slytherins gathered around a handsome boy who introduced himself as Zeynep Zabini. He led the way to the dungeons with a quick pace, and halted in front of a brick wall. 

"Serpent Tongue," he spoke and the wall slid open to reveal a large room. "The girls' dormitories are to the left, and the boys' dormitories to the right."

Ginny looked around the cosy common room and felt a sense of belonging. The brick walls and stone floor gave little warmth, but fires and tapestries made sure it did not get too cold. High-backed chairs and wooden tables were scattered across the room around the fires, and a collection of books aligned two walls.

"Let's get to bed," Darren Xavier said suddenly. "I'm tired."

The girls disappeared through a door on the left, like Zeynep had told them, and found a large hallway with seven doors. They opened the one on the far right end that said 'First Years', and saw that all of their suitcases were already placed by their beds. Green curtains were draped around the four-poster beds and the blankets were Slytherin green as well. 

"You know me," Marita said. "I'm a Rosvenir."

"I'm Natalya Cruz," Natalya said.

"Alisha Avery," Ginny's blonde friend nodded curtly. "The only sane person in my family."

"I'm Virginia Weasley," Ginny said. "You can call me Ginny."

"And I am Devica Parkinson. Call me Dev, or Devi." 

As Dev had introduced herself, and smiled broadly at everyone else Ginny yawned and collapsed on her bed in a heap. She got her diary out of her trunk and scribbled a hurried note.

****

_I am in Slytherin._

If she had stayed awake for just a little longer she would have seen the reply forming itself on the diary's pages, but Ginny was away into the land of dreams already.

**In Slytherin? Little Virginia, that news is wonderful!**

***

_"Where are you?"_

_Ginny called out to the beautiful butterfly she had seen at the beginning of her dream while her bare feet touched the cold marble floor. She was somewhere she had not been before, in a dark bathroom filled with jars and little boxes. She opened the door and found herself standing in a long hallway. Suddenly screams filled the air as the rooms were torn to pieces with green flashes of light. _

_She was standing in the middle of a ruin now, little Ginny with her Hogwarts robes on, and shivered with cold from the snow falling upon her now. The screams had come from a girl a little bit older than Ginny, who had pulled her wand out now and faced the hooded figures with cold fury blazing from her eyes. _

_She was pregnant. Even from the great distance between them Ginny noticed the slightly rounded belly of the redheaded girl. And this pregnancy seemed like the most important thing in the dream, even though Ginny didn't realise that until she woke up._

_The hooded figures advanced on the girl who tried to hex them before her wand flew into the outstretched hand of the leader. Ginny turned away then, which was the wisest thing to do. The girl's screams as the wizards tortured her split through the silent night and the sound of it would have driven even the toughest wizard insane. _

A new voice added itself to the murmurs of the wizards, cursing them or killing them. And as the voice called the name of the girl, a name Ginny knew already in the back of her mind, she woke up.

***

The next morning Ginny woke to the sound of a shower. She first thought she was back at the Burrow but soon heard Alisha hum a tune known to most magical folk as 'Deep Inside' by The Weird Sisters.

She blinked as she realised she was still fully dressed, and not in pyjamas as she had imagined. She drew the curtains of her four-poster back and was surprised to see that only Dev's curtains were closed. Marita smiled as she saw Ginny and exclaimed:

"Morning sleepy! Are you ready for today?"

"Stop being so happy, Rita," Natalya scolded as she came out of the bathroom. "I hate mornings."

"I don't," Marita said cheerfully. "I love mornings! It's the only thing I can get excited about."

"Glad to hear it," Ginny grumbled. "One of us needs to be the victim of a pillow fight every now and then."

Marita was spared from replying as Dev woke up and exclaimed a string of curses that would have made her parents smile. (Dev's parents were proud of their daughter's vocabulary, even though it was not very civilised.) Dev drew the curtains back and Ginny laughed as she saw the petite blonde entangled in the blankets. Alisha suppressed a giggle and started to comb her hair while Marita tried to free Dev from her awkward position. Natalya shared an amused look with Ginny before she went to help Marita.

Ginny got up and walked to the bathroom. She gasped as she saw herself in the mirror. After tonight's dream Ginny had realised that she probably looked like a complete mess, but she had not expected it to be this bad. She washed herself thoroughly and performed a simple spell on her robes to make them look like new. She brushed her hair and after nodding at her reflection with satisfaction she walked out of the bathroom.

Marita and Natalya'd had success with freeing Dev, who was now sitting on the floor painting her nails with a beauty spell. Alisha was humming another song as she packed her bag. When they had all finished readying themselves for their first school day they made their way to the common room.

Ginny lost track of the number of times Dev wanted to take a wrong turn on the way to the Great Hall, but Natalya seemed to have a good sense of direction because she led them to the Great Hall within a couple of minutes. They joined their fellow Slytherins at the table and ate breakfast in silence. 

Ginny saw that Ron and Harry were back at the Gryffindor table, and saw Errol the owl deliver something to Ron that looked remarkably like a Howler. And sure enough, it was a Howler that made Molly Weasley's voice scream louder than usual. Apparently Ron had flown the old Ford Anglia of their father to school, together with Harry, and dad faced an inquiry at work about it. 

Draco Malfoy snorted with laughter next to Marita, who smiled broadly and muttered something about 'crazy cars' under her breath. Alisha and Natalya had not noticed the Howler (or hadn't cared) and were talking about the classes they had today.

Ginny looked down at her own schedule and saw that their first lesson was with Lockhart. After that it wasn't so bad, with Transfiguration and Charms until break. In the afternoon there was a free hour, and then there was History of Magic for two whole hours.

She then felt somebody's eyes on her, and was surprised to find Ron looking at her in disgust. Malfoy had probably noticed something, because just before she got up and left the Great Hall with her newfound friends in tow he slipped her a note. As they waited in front of Lockhart's classroom Ginny folded it open.

_Meet me in the far end of the library at the end of your lessons today. I need to talk to you._

Ginny blinked for a moment and then shredded the paper to pieces. She would go and see him, but first of all she needed to catch up on some hexes in her free hour. She was not going to meet a member of the Malfoy family unarmed. 

As the door to Lockhart's classroom opened Ginny could not help but reflect on the very weird turns her life had taken this past month. First she found a diary in her old Transfiguration book, and then she got Sorted into Slytherin. And the dream last night... Ginny wondered if it was just a nightmare, or something else...

***

It was no longer asleep. It was waiting for the heir to come to the room it was locked in. The heir was at Hogwarts, that much was clear. But how, or why, the creature could not tell. It just waited patiently for the one who could free it from its chains. 

Last time it had killed. It felt a rush of pride as it reminisced the moment. The Master was the only witness of the murder. And now the Master had returned to the school, weakened but alert.

The creature would have to wait for the Master until the Master was strong enough. Strong enough to search for those unworthy of studying magic in this school, and to control the creature so that it could kill once more.

It heard the cold laughter of its Master inside of its mind. The Master had once been on the wrong side, on the good side. You will turn to the one who did not hurt you. The creature had heard that exact sentence for a long time already. And the Master had turned to the creature after the good people hurt him. But now nothing would ever hurt the Master again, for now he had the support of the creature Salazar Slytherin had once put in the room. The Master had the creature and the creature had the Master.

And it waited.

~*~

**Read? Review!**


	2. First Moves

**Title:** Slytherin Forever! Book One - Blood Ties.

**Author:** Kathryn Volcanov.

**Rating:** PG-13.

**Summary:** CoS AU. The Slytherin House did not always have a bad name... or a mark of evil wizards upon its banner. As Hogwarts stands at the beginning of dark times a small group of Slytherins search a way to restore their House to the glory and pride once associated with it. Virginia Weasley, a witch raised in a Gryffindor household, struggles with the power given to her when she starts her first year at Hogwarts... as a Slytherin.

**Disclaimer:** This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The plotline belongs to me, as well as any characters not found in JK Rowling's books. 

**Author Notes:** I do not like Lockhart at all, so I might make him a bit over-the-top at times. I sincerely apologize to anyone who likes him (are there even persons out there who like him?) and his antics. He will be an egocentric little piece of cowardice in here. Ron fans will probably hate me in this chapter, but I have my reasons. Americanisms are partly LW's fault and partly my own. 'Fraternizing with the enemy' is officially used in Book Four...

Seeing as this is an AU not only the storyline takes a different twist, but also certain non-important events written by JK Rowling. Basic outline: the lessons are different, there are no extra dwellings on the victory of Gryffindor over Slytherin, and there is certainly no Harry-like heroism. Shanna is based on my editor Christie, who is a huge fan of Sirius and begged for a role in one of my stories.

**~*~**

**Chapter Two: First Moves.**

**~*~**

It's the hardest thing to do 

_To see it coming over you_

_Never thought I could break the rules_

_Now I got nothing to lose_

**- Nothing To Lose, Lullacry.**

**~*~**

"As you all know, I am Gilderoy Lockhart. I will be the one to arm you against the evil forces of this world so that you can grow up safely. We will start the lesson with a little quiz. It is nothing to be worried about, I just want to get an idea of how much you know."

As Lockhart finished talking and started handing out the quiz papers a long silence fell in the whole classroom. Marita was noting every hex she knew down on a piece of parchment - Ginny saw it because Marita was seated next to her - and Natalya was staring out of the window. Alisha looked extremely happy about the quiz, Ginny realized after a moment. Dev was filing her nails and did not look down at her paper once. Ginny decided she should probably get started so she looked down at her own copy.

She stifled a giggle as she read the questions. All of them were related to Lockhart's personality and not to the things he did, and Lockhart was the exact thing Ginny didn't know anything about. She had never wanted to know what color Lockhart's robes had been at the 'Witch Weekly' award show, unlike her mother who saved everything that had to do with Lockhart. Ginny left her paper blank.

Lockhart collected the papers and swallowed as he showed them to the class. Marita and Dev started to laugh uncontrollably as they saw that every single paper was blank. Their laughter caught the attention of Natalya, who had missed the point completely and was looking around the room for somebody to explain it to her. Natalya's facial expression (a mixture of surprise and confusement) was so funny that everyone started to laugh. 

"It is quite a disappointment," Lockhart said after they had finished. "You should all read my books as homework and I will make another interesting quiz for you. What do you say to that, then?"

Some Slytherins shrugged mutely, but others dived under their tables to control their laughter. Ginny did neither. She had read Lockhart's books once and that was enough. She would just try to remember some things told in them. 

Lockhart's lesson continued in a relaxed atmosphere with him telling all about the grand defeat of the Jules, a particulary dangerous clan of vampires. Ginny soon found herself laughing along with the majority of the group at some of Lockhart's weirder antics to repel vampires, and his insistance on checking his reflection in a nearby mirror every five minutes. When the hour ended the group came out of the classroom looking completely alert and ready for the rest of the day.

"You know your homework!"

Lockhart motioned for the Gryffindor group to go inside as he shouted the homework assignment once more to the Slytherins. Natalya and Dev led the way to the Transfiguration classroom (taking a wrong turn because Dev still did not seem to know the way) and Ginny laughed along with the twins Trevor and Nelson Baddock as Alisha did a pretty good impression of Lockhart. 

Transfiguration was difficult, and the only person who had managed to produce a perfect needle out of a match was Marita. She explained to the group as they walked to the Charms classroom that her father was an Animagus and that she had learned the trick from him. Ginny made a mental note to ask Marita for that trick later on seeing as her own match had done nothing else than lying there like a match. 

Charms was about water-repellant incantations, and Ginny enjoyed the lesson thoroughly. When Thomas Rivers used a different spell and ended up with one short sleeve and one long sleeve on his sweater Professor Flitwick toppled off his chair and ended up in the bucket of water they had been practising with. This event caused Natalya to say the wrong spell and set her book on fire. Ginny had saved Natalya's book and the Slytherin house points by using a simple 'Extinguish' spell. It had earned her five housepoints and that brought the total of earned points so far on fifteen. 

Lunch was rather uneventful, seeing as only Alisha was available to talk to. Natalya and Thomas were trying to finish the Charms homework, and Dev was arguing with the twins about pranks while Marita was stuck in the library with Jayden McCoy to do the Transfiguration assignment. 

The free hour was spent in the library by all Slytherin first-years. Most of them were making homework, but Ginny had done that under lunch and was looking hexes up in a book with the promising title: 'Hexes For Male Foes'. Natalya looked over Ginny's shoulder and read some of the more painful hexes out aloud for the others to hear, which caused quite a bit of laughter. When Ginny thought that she knew enough hexes to stand her ground against Malfoy she took her diary out of her pocket.

**_I'm having a great time with the Slytherins, Tom! The lessons went well, apart from Transfiguration that is extremely difficult, and I love to be near my new friends._**

Transfiguration was not my strongest point either, so I cannot be of much help there, but I am glad everything else goes so well.

**_Yeah, and I did not want to be in Slytherin at first. My brothers always told me that Slytherin was the House of evil wizards and I am not evil or anything. Now I realise that Slytherin is just a House with ambitions and clever people. But I wonder what my family has to say about the fact that I want to stay here..._**

There has never been something like a re-Sort, Virginia. You don't have to worry about being transferred to a new House, especially if you don't want to.

****

**_I think I don't really fit in here._**

****

**Why not?**

**_Alisha and Natalya are really funny, Marita is clever and already knows that she is going to be an Unspeakable when she grows up and Dev is just... Dev._**

But you are Ginny. A very intelligent little lady with a certain flair for bringing joy to somebody else's life. Don't you even dare to think about the others as better than you. You are at least as good, if not better!

**_Thanks Tom. I'm so glad that I've got this diary to confide in... It's like a friend I can carry around in my pocket. I have to go now because we have History of Magic next. Two hours!!!_**

**Back to your pocket it is then. Promise me you will write again soon.**

**_Promised. _**

Ginny felt relieved after the talk with her diary. She had been worried about not fitting in, but Tom had wiped all of her worries away with a couple of words.

"My sister told me Binns is really boring," Dev said to Ginny. "He goes on and on about the Goblin rebellions and only he can make them sound as if they are nothing more than just a friendly conference."

"The rebellions are quite a large historical part of this country," Ginny said. "I doubt that even Binns could make them as boring as your sister tells you."

But Ginny soon found that Dev's sister Pansy had been absolutely right. Binns had the gift of keeping a class silent but that was because everybody fell asleep or was desperately trying to stay awake. Ginny dozed off as well after taking some notes about the Goblin rebellion of 687. 

When the lesson was over Alisha was trying to wake Dev up, who had fallen vast asleep after the first two sentences Binns spoke. When she finally woke she was in a bad mood and stalked off to the common room. Ginny waved to the rest of her little group of friends as she walked up the stairs towards the library where she had to meet Malfoy. 

Ron stopped her in the library corridor. He was alone, Ginny noticed, and looked annoyed about something. His icy tone scared Ginny a little bit as he asked her a question.

"Why are you in Slytherin?"

"I am in Slytherin because the Sorting Hat thought that was the best option."

"The best option," Ron said hollowly. "My sister, my very own SISTER is fraternizing with the ENEMY!"

"I am NOT fraternizing with any enemies, Ron! Now let go of my arm or I swear that I'll hex you."

Ginny's voice dropped to a menacing whisper as she finished the sentence. Ron looked as if he had tasted something extremely dirty and whispered before he left:

"Don't even think about coming back to the Burrow this summer. You are no longer a member of my family, Virginia. Not anymore."

When he had disappeared from sight Ginny slid down against the wall and started to cry. She didn't know for how long she had sat there - must have been quite a while - when she heard a voice say her last name. She looked up and saw Malfoy kneeling down in front of her.

"What are you crying about, Weasley?"

His voice was kinder than Ron's voice had been, but Ginny started to cry even harder. Malfoy put a reassuring hand on her shoulder and helped her to stand.

"M-my brother is mad at me," Ginny stammered. "He said I was 'fraternizing with the enemy'."

"Are you?"

"I don't think so. Slytherins aren't enemies, are they?"

"Not for you. Your brother is a different story," Malfoy answered. "When I get him in my hands I will send him to the hospital wing in a matchbox. Your family stays your family, no matter what."

"A matchbox? You do realise that my mother will send you home to your family in a matchbox as well, don't you Malfoy?"

"I am fully aware of that," Malfoy said softly. "But your brother went out of line."

"What did you want to talk about anyway?"

"Your House choice. I wanted to test you a bit, to see if you really belong with us. I've watched you at lunch with your friends. You seemed to interact quite good with them, even though some are Slytherins at heart. But now that Weasel has been so stupid to say this to you it just doesn't seem fair anymore."

"I never knew you were this nice."

"Neither did I. And stop calling me Malfoy. We are housemates, and therefore you should call me by my first name: Draco."

"Only if you call me Ginny."

Ginny walked to the common room with Draco, who was a newfound friend. It had really been a strange month, Ginny thought once more. She had no idea that within a matter of days this strangeness would take an unexpected turn.

***

Salem Academy of Magic. Salem, Massachusetts. United States of America. 

"Mel, I am wary about letting you go."

The headmistress, Professor May Sheldon, looked at the young woman in front of her and sighed. Melanie Smith was one of the best Divination teachers Salem had ever seen, and May was not keen on letting Mel go as she had requested.

"I know that. But I can stay with Catherine during the day and go out in the night. I have to go to London, May. I can sense that my presence will be needed there soon. Hogwarts is about to experience something that nobody will forget anytime soon. I have to be there to help."

"Is it really so urgent?"

"Yes."

"I will not keep you here then," May decided. "All the best to you and your friend. I hope to see you soon."

"All the best."

The slim woman rose and after she had nodded curtly at her former boss she left the office. May scribbled a note on a piece of parchment and thought about what she had just done. The energetic Diviner had been a source of inspiration for everyone of the staff, and going to London was dangerous for somebody as delicate as Mel. 

Mel's condition was going backwards. A journey to Britain was the last thing Mel needed right now, because some memories could not be erased. Mel's pale features and thin body were a sign of bad health, and her already greying hair was not the healthy color it had once been. Secretly May hoped she would see the blackhaired woman among her staff again but knew deep inside that this was too much to ask.

***

Durmstrang School For Magic, somewhere in Bulgaria.

Igor Karkaroff scrutinized the young Auror in front of him. She did not look into his eyes as she spoke but she had a superior smirk on her face that Igor detested immediately. Her peppercolored hair reached down to her waist and she was quite pretty, but Igor felt no comforting warmth radiate from her at all. Her name was familiar to all magical people: Shanna Malfoy.

She had been raised in a Death Eater household after the unfortunate death of her mother, Rissa, who had died at the hands of Aurors. The whole wizarding world knew her name after she completed her Auror training, becoming one of the persons her family would have to fight, and married Sirius Black. After he was sentenced for life in Azkaban Shanna had disappeared from view as well. Now she had resurfaced, and was asking Igor for a job as Dark Arts teacher at Durmstrang.

He sighed and shoved the contract he had been holding towards the girl. A mumble of gratitude was heard as she signed the contract. Igor did not know if he had made the right decision, but there had not been much of a choice. Dark Arts teachers were hard to find and Igor was glad that it was an Auror who took the job on, even if it was somebody like Shanna.

***

A week later.

_Ginny was dreaming once more. She was standing on top of a hill in her nightgown and looked at a small village down below. The howling of a wolf could be heard in the distance, never coming closer and never fading, and a healthy summer breeze caressed Ginny's hair._

_Yet something was wrong. The peaceful village did not belong there, and neither did the summer breeze. It was winter instead of summer, and the village was nothing more than a group of snowcovered rocks. What caused the illusion was standing right behind Ginny, watching over her shoulder._

Tears streamed down Ginny's cheeks as she called out to the one friend she needed right now, but he did not appear. She was alone, she knew that for certain deep inside, but it felt like somebody was with her all the time. Something was moving inside of the walls. There were no walls in her dreamland, she realized after a moment. But it was too late already as she woke from her dream.

She collapsed on the floor of a bathroom, breathing heavily as she fought for control. Only when she did not hear the cold and cruel laughter inside of her mind anymore she sat upright. She didn't know why everything was red, but she still managed to get out of the bathroom without bumping into anything. Ginny ran back to her common room and seated herself in one of the chairs.

Something bad was happening to her. She didn't know what caused it, but she knew that she had to find out soon before even worse things started to happen. She regained her normal sight after a couple of minutes, nothing that had not been red before was red now, and just before she fell asleep she made a mental note to research certain things in the library tomorrow.

Tom watched Ginny's sleeping form with a satisfied smile on his face. She had done exactly the thing he wanted her to do. He recalled her red eyes with a frown though, seeing as his temporary control of her body should not trigger such a strong reaction. Maybe there was more to little Ginny that met the eye, but Tom doubted it. 

She was naive and easy to control. Her friends would form an obstacle soon, but Tom knew that he would have success in the end. This would become a year to remember... Tom was sure of that. With Ginny's strength he would be brought back to life. 

And Harry Potter, the boy who had defeated him, would die at the hands of the greatest wizard of all time: Lord Voldemort. Albus Dumbledore would not be there to save the boy, and neither would his friends. Nobody would suspect the youngest Weasley to be the source of this evil. It was perfect.

***

The library was closed. Not even Peeves, the poltergeist dared to go in there at night. Stories had been told about the Hogwarts library by anyone who had passed by at midnight. Those stories were usually a part of a very lively imagination, but sometimes they were true.

If anyone had passed by tonight that person would tell a story to anyone who would want to hear it. Books flew out of the shelves, even in the Restricted Section, and opened themselves. The subject of all opened pages of the books was something that was as old as the school itself, built by one of its founders.

The Chamber of Secrets.

~*~

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	3. Enemies Of The Heir

**Title:** Slytherin Forever! Book One - Blood Ties.

**Author:** Kathryn Volcanov.

**Rating:** PG-13.

**Spoilers:** PS/SS, CoS, FBAWTFT, QTTA.

**Summary:** CoS AU. The Slytherin House did not always have a bad name... or a mark of evil wizards upon its banner. As Hogwarts stands at the beginning of dark times a small group of Slytherins search a way to restore their House to the glory and pride once associated with it. Virginia Weasley, a witch raised in a Gryffindor household, struggles with the power given to her when she starts her first year at Hogwarts... as a Slytherin.

**Disclaimer:** This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The plotline belongs to me, as well as any characters not found in JK Rowling's books. 

**Author Notes:** This was a very easy chapter, seeing as I had a bit of support from the book this time. I love reviews, and I will take constructive criticism to heart. I won't keep you waiting any longer: here is chapter three!

**~*~**

**Chapter Three: Enemies Of The Heir.**

**~*~**

_I'm the writing on the wall_

_See what it means to call me,_

_Call me by that name_

**- Whisper In The Chaos, Lullacry**

**~*~**

Ginny could hardly believe that she had been at Hogwarts for a month already. She was completely used to Slytherin customs now and barely recognized herself when she talked to her friends and teachers. She had become a true Slytherin, making snide remarks about other Houses wherever she went and showing her wit and cunning in planning some of the harder practical jokes with Trevor and Nelson.

She was also used to the certain disregard for rules all Slytherins seemed to possess, especially when it came to getting House points. Her lessons - apart from Transfiguration - went extremely well and Ginny soon found that she had a special talent in the Potions field. Professor Snape gave her extra assignments, which she completed with new discoveries about certain ingredients and potions. 

Fred and George left her alone, and so did Percy. Ron was a different story, seeing as he passed by at the most impossible times to make certain comments about Slytherin that didn't go down well with Ginny's group of friends. Ginny planned on getting him back for it sometime in the near future.

But by the time Halloween arrived Ginny's plans for revenge were disturbed. Her health was going backwards and she seemed to get tired even without making any effort. Madame Pomfrey had given her Pepper-Up potions every time she went to the Hospital Wing because she was not feeling well, but they only lasted for a short while.

Her search in the library about her little experience in the bathroom had not been successful. She had no clues on what was happening to her. Draco had asked Lockhart for permission to research in the Restricted Section, and had been granted full access at all times. So far his search had been without any success.

Draco had become one of Ginny's best friends after the incident with Ron, and was never seen without the little redhead outside of class. He was the only one who knew about Ginny's real problem - the others thought she just took too much work on - and was sworn to secrecy about it. 

The diary was something Ginny didn't tell anyone about. Natalya and Alisha knew she kept a diary, but Marita and Dev were clueless. Ginny wanted to keep Tom to herself. Not even Draco knew about the spiritual friend Ginny's diary contained. Just the way she wanted it to be. 

"We're going down to the Feast. Gin, are you coming too?"

Ginny rolled over on her back to look at Alisha, who had applied a ridiculous amount of make-up on her face. The other girls were standing behind the blonde girl with huge smiles. Their faces fell when Ginny shook her head and said:

"I'd rather not. I am going to sleep here for a while and then perhaps make some homework. You go and have fun, okay?"

The girls nodded, and although Dev and Natalya wanted to stay with Ginny Marita dragged them up to the Great Hall. Alisha took a long look around the room and then at Ginny, who already gestured that she would be fine.

But when the door closed behind Alisha and shut the noises coming from the Slytherin common room that was filled with partying Slytherins out Ginny got up and grabbed her diary. She let one single drop of ink fall onto one of the pages and began to write.

Several minutes later Ginny began to feel a bit light-headed, but Tom asked her to keep writing to him. She found his request nothing out of the ordinary - he had asked her this before - and kept scribbling things of non-importance onto the page. Suddenly Tom told her to stop. There was a flash, like lightning, and Ginny was dreaming again.

_She was in a dark room with barely any light. The black book in front of her snapped shut as she rose from her seat and started to scan the page of another book that was lying on one of the beds. When she thought that she knew enough she walked out of the room down a dimly lit hallway with six other doors. But they were not her goal. _

_She entered a large room after she left the hallway. She thought that there was no way out at first, but then reconsidered the thought as she headed straight for a solid wall. There was somebody whispering a word in her mind, and she said it out loud. The wall opened. Ginny giggled as she realized that this was just like magic..._

_She was led through a maze of passageways until she knew for sure that she could not find a way back, and suddenly found herself standing on the hill again. The snow covered rocks called out to her, tauntingly, until she started to speak a language she did not know she could speak._

_"I, the Heir of the Greatest Founder of them all, ask permission to open the Chamber and unleash the horror within. I am a child of Salazar Slytherin. I shall not be denied!"_

_To Ginny's ears it sounded like hissing, but her mind translated it for her in her own language. She gasped as the rocks began to move and revealed a large hole in the ground. She called out to something in the deep depths of the hole and then left the hill. _

_Suddenly she saw the butterfly that she had seen in her first dream. She went after it and found herself staring at a solid wall. The butterfly was gone but it had done its work well. _

_THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE!_

_She wrote it on the wall with a beautiful red color, with the spell she had seen in the book that had lied on the bed. She finished just in time but accidentally touched her robes with her hand while saying the spell which resulted in the red substance being smeared all over the front. _

_Something was moving inside of the walls... _

_It should not find Ginny there. She ran away from the place, through pools of water on the floor, but soon encountered a cat. She called out to the thing inside of the walls, because she knew what it was... and left the scene. _

_She ran right back to the dark room and opened the black book once more. She wanted to get out of this world and leave the danger there. And her wish was granted._

Ginny got up and closed the diary just before her eyes turned red. This time, however, she was prepared for it and had herself under control within two minutes. She didn't know why her eyes turned red, and why it was a sign of lost control, but she would find out sooner or later. The fight for control had not passed without making any victims... namely some vases with flowers in them. Ginny could not be bothered to clean the floor. There were more important things.

Her robes were dripping with red paint. She waved her wand impatiently and was pleased to see the paint vanish. She went to the bathroom to fresh herself up a bit, and nearly screamed when she saw herself in the mirror. She looked like she had been dead for several days!

Her eyes had dark circles under them. She was pale, like a vampire, and her vivid red hair was more like thin rope. Her lips had burst from cold and were dry. She looked thinner than usual, for some reason, and her robes seemed way too big for her. And she was so tired all of a sudden...

When the other girls came back to their dorm they found Ginny fast asleep on the bed. Dev closed the door behind her softly, while Marita and Alisha cleaned the floor and repaired the vases with a flick of their wands (they would not let Natalya near them, seeing as she wasn't any good with Charms).

Natalya shook Ginny awake, which resulted in a reprimande from the tired redhead. But when Ginny noticed the grave faces of her friends she blinked in confusion and asked if anything was wrong.

"There is certainly something wrong," Marita said softly. "Mrs Norris was attacked tonight. The teachers have taken Potter, Granger, and your brother with them for questioning."

"It seems like we have got our revenge on Ronniekins after all," Natalya said happily. "Whoever it was that attacked Mrs Norris and wrote that message on the wall deserves a grand hug."

"Maybe it was Potter," Dev said. "I have always disliked him, and am not giving him a hug."

"Harry's not that bad!" Ginny exclaimed immediately because she still harboured a bit of a crush on Ron's best friend. Then, as an afterthought, she added: "And what is this about a message on the wall? Tell me everything!"

"It just said that the Chamber of Secrets had been opened," Natalya answered. "It had the Slytherin slogan underneath: Enemies of the Heir, beware! It was written with red paint."

"So now nearly everyone suspects a Slytherin to have done it," Alisha added helpfully. "But I wouldn't worry. Go back to sleep, Gin. You will need it in the morning. Lockhart's first."

Ginny nodded and closed the curtains of her four-poster. When she was certain that everyone was asleep she sat up straight and thought things over.

She suspected herself to have written the things on the wall. Her memory of tonight was blurry, but she recalled cleaning her robes because there was paint all over them. Red paint. She wanted Ron to be guilty, just to have a feeling of successful revenge, but she knew that she was.

The only logical thing to do was to write to Tom tomorrow. She needed his advice. But for now she had to sleep, because tomorrow would be a busy day.

*******

Lockhart's lessons had turned out to be a bit of a joke after the first day. The Slytherins always enjoyed his lessons immensely, seeing as they were not very difficult and always good for a laugh. But today's lesson was very different from usual. 

"After the disturbing events last night I have decided that you will have to learn something about counter-curses. I would like you all to grab your wand and repeat after me: Veritae Voltae!"

Lockhart was stupid enough to have pointed his wand at one of his photographs while saying it, so that it erupted in flames. Marita extinguished the fire with a flick of her wand and Lockhart beamed at her before continuing:

"I should give you feathers to practice on. This very counter-curse was used to repel a venomous werewolf so that I could save the people living in a little town in Romania from its wrath. Go right ahead and see what you make of the feathers!"

Ginny gave a derisive snort and pointed her wand at the feather given to her. She muttered the spell under her breath and was pleased to see that it worked instantly. She was one of the very few people who had pointed their wands at the feather.

Dev was busy with setting fire to all photographs within wand aim, and Trevor and Nelson extinguished those fires with a simple spell. Natalya and Alisha were pointing their wands at Lockhart's robes, and set fire to them. Lockhart did not notice a thing until Jayden called for his attention with pointing at Lockhart's feet. 

He screamed like a girl. Thomas started to laugh loudly at Lockhart's panicky face and soon the whole group was hiccupping with laughter. Alisha had kept her head cool and extinguished the fire set to Lockhart before she dissolved into fits of giggles.

They had to pay for their little prank with a price of ten House points. It was a mild punishment - McGonagall would have taken thirty off - but it was still greeted with silence and in some cases loud objections. Ginny remained silent, but was already planning to get the lost points back with Potions tomorrow.

It seemed to be a bad day for all the Slytherins. Draco told Ginny inbetween lessons that even Sprout had taken three points off Slytherin because of a silly remark made by Pansy Parkinson. Professor Kettleburn, the Care of Magical Creatures teacher, had dealt a record of detentions out to the Slytherin fourth years after they had failed their tests.

The Slytherin Prefects, Zeynep Zabini and Verice Walters, were having loads of trouble with complaining students. This resulted in a harder time for all the Slytherins. Zeynep had shouted at Marcus Flint for ten minutes straight because Flint had interrupted him with a faulty Quidditch training schedule, while Verice had taken twenty points off her own House by lunchtime. Ginny had talked to Zeynep just before her free hour started and was surprised to hear that the teachers were taking the threatening message on the wall seriously.

"You mean there is actually something in this castle like the Chamber of Secrets?"

Natalya's reaction to Ginny's report on the weird behavior of everyone in school was a welcome distraction from schoolwork for the other first-years. Nothing was more fun than seeing the blackhaired girl think everything over before she jumped to - usually stupid - conclusions. 

"If there is indeed a Chamber, it is well hidden," Jayden said. Noticing the stares from everyone else he continued: "The castle has been searched thoroughly for such a Chamber, and nobody found it. Now we know why everyone is so hostile against us. The Chamber was built by Salazar Slytherin."

Alisha whistled through her teeth and grabbed her copy of Hogwarts: A History from the pile of books on the table. She leafed through it quickly - according to Dev Alisha knew every page by heart - and stopped at a new chapter.

"... And after an argument with Godric Gryffindor about the selection of students (see page twelve) Slytherin left the school. The story goes that Slytherin had built a secret Chamber, of which the other Founders knew nothing," Alisha began. "Slytherin sealed the Chamber so that none would be able to open it until his own true Heir arrived at the school."

"A Slytherin," Trevor stated. "The Heir must be a Slytherin."

"Not necessarily," Alisha answered and then continued with reading. "The Heir alone can unseal the Chamber, and unleash the horror within. This monster could be used to rid the school of those unworthy of studying magic."

A grave silence fell after her words, only broken by the racket some owls were making outside. Ginny felt faint. She was in Slytherin, and she did not know where she had been last night...

"The Heir can also be a member of another House," Jayden said thoughtfully. "Blood does not count with the Sorting Hat, because then most of us would be somewhere else, and most kids here have parents who were not in the same House."

"On the other hand the Heir could be a Slytherin," Ginny said softly. "The Blood of the Founders is more important than anything else, and influences your personality. The Clearwaters have married several Gryffindors over the years, and yet there has not been one who was not in Ravenclaw. Mum told me they are related to Rowena Ravenclaw herself."

"And the Bones family has always been in Hufflepuff," Dev said after a moment. "Ginny's right, the Heir is a Slytherin."

"I didn't say that," Ginny protested. "I said it could be, not that it was definitely so."

"Let's just hope that you're right," Nelson sighed. "The other Houses hate us enough as it is."

*******

Vuori College For Witchcraft, Savonlinna, Finland.

_Gudrun --_

_It has been a while since we've been in touch, and I regret not writing to you sooner. Things, as usual, got in my way. _

_The Zeppo is ready for action. We are keeping an eye on Y-K-W in Albania, and all our members are where they should be. I want you to pay a bit more attention to matters happening in Britain. _

_We received a very disturbing phonecall from Catherine two days ago. Apparently Mel has moved in with her, saying something about Hogwarts and Heirs before she fainted and was brought to a Muggle hospital nearby. If her premonitions are accurate - and you know they are - something bad is going to happen at the school soon._

_Tell me everything you know about the Chamber of Secrets in your next letter._

_Blessed be..._

Although there was no name under the letter Gudrun Halonen knew from who it was the instant she had read it completely. Colin Montana's way of cutting to the case was infamous. 

She frowned as she read the letter again. The matter of Hogwarts had been keeping her awake since last night, when she had received an owl from Severus Snape. His message had been urgent and disturbing, and Gudrun could not help but wonder who it was this time. 

She knew who it had been the last time the Chamber had been opened. Although everyone thought it was somebody else Gudrun knew who the real culprit was. But he was too weak to attack anyone, and too far away this time...

Gudrun's mother had been at Hogwarts in the days of the Opening of the Chamber. She had died two years ago, but not before sharing her secret with her daughter.

It was 1941. Gudrun's mother, called Jessa, started her fourth year at Hogwarts as a Slytherin. That year had proved to become a bad omen for the following year 1942. 

A sixth-year Slytherin died with Christmas, attacked by Aurors in her family home. The only witness of this murder was her friend, who escaped with a few cuts and bruises. Jessa knew that something was wrong with him the minute she caught him talking to his dead friend as if she was still there.

She had no idea that what she had just witnessed would become the foundation of the Rising of Lord Voldemort. Slytherin's Heir was at Hogwarts, and wanted revenge for the murder of his friend. So he unleashed the horror of the Chamber in the school, willing to rid it of those from Muggle parentage, but he had not seen a fairhaired girl sneak away towards the library the night the creature killed a Muggle-born Hufflepuff.

Jessa had seen the Heir of Slytherin at work. She knew what he could do. When Lord Voldemort rose, many years after the Chamber had been opened, she was the only one who knew his true identity. There was no one else who could link the snake-faced Lord to the handsome boy Jessa had known and trusted with her life.

And now Gudrun knew what her mother had known for all this time. She could give the information to The Zeppo, or she could keep it to herself for the time being. She would have to think long and hard about the decision that had to be made.

People could die.

Gudrun smiled grimly as she remembered the Slytherin slogan. It seemed so fitting for the occasion, so familiar for the battle ahead of them...

Enemies of the Heir, beware!

**~*~**

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	4. Revelations

**~*~**

**Chapter Four: Revelations.**

**~*~**

_Closing your eyes to disappear_

_You pray your dreams will leave you here_

_But still you wake and know the truth_

No one's there 

**- My Last Breath, Evanescence.**

**~*~**

"Das Glauben in die Serafim und die Nachtseite fand ich zurück in die Glaubens von viele Völker der Erde, und immer ist es eine Verehrung von Blut, Irrsin und Tod..."

"And now in English, please?"

The Slytherin first-years were in the library, researching Defense Against The Dark Arts material. Seeing as Lockhart did nothing more than talk about himself they were forced to find everything interesting out themselves. Natalya had found a German book on the shelf and was now, together with Dev, trying to translate it so that the others understood.

"I found the belief in the Seraphim and the Nightside back in the beliefs of many nations on Earth, and it is always a reverence of blood, insanity and death..."

"Does it really say that it _is_ a reverence?" Thomas asked them. "That would mean that some people still believe that nonsense."

"It's not nonsense," Jayden said with a sigh. He was the Slytherin version of Hermione Granger, Ginny realized suddenly as he continued: "The belief described in that book is also a part of a denomination called the Vayaen. They have written the three Books of Insanity, which is supposed to be some kind of collection of their knowledge about the Seraphim."

"How do you know that?"

Although Nelson looked as dumbfounded as the rest of the group Ginny knew that he was in reality very interested in anything that had to do with Dark Arts, and would do whatever it took to find out about something he did not know about them. 

"My father collects books about different denominations," Jayden said with a shrug. "The Vayaen are the most interesting one, though. Did you know that they actually killed the author and the translator of that book Dev is holding now?"

"Why?"

Ginny uttered the question softly, not wanting to draw any attention to their little group because Ron and his friends had just come in. Jayden looked around for a moment to make sure nobody was listening before he whispered:

"That author, Kazaj Heinz Vogel, was a member of the Vayaen under a false identity. He copied a cpuple of pages of the Books of Insanity but quit halfway through because 'even my trained mind could not bare anything more than the horrors described within'. Yet in that book Dev is holding there were more than enough things written about the Vayaen, things they did not want anyone to know. They killed Vogel because he knew too much and destroyed almost all of the copies."

"And what about the translator?"

"A German student called Edith Brendall found a copy of the original book in the restricted section of a library in 1907. She was fascinated by it and because she had a photographic memory she was able to write most of it down when she left the library. She translated it in German, as you can see here, and published it. She shouldn't have done that, because the Vayaen went after her. Three years later her body was found in the Rhine in Hamburg. She had been killed, and her body was mutilated. All of her teeth had been removed from her mouth and hammered into her skull to form a very strange pattern."

"What pattern?"

Ginny thought that this was certainly not the most important question that had to be asked right now, but Dev obviously thought otherwise. Jayden furrowed his brow, trying to remember what he had read, before exclaiming a distinct 'eureka'.

"The symbol of our House," he said to the quiet group. "Salazar Slytherin believed everything the Vayaen told him and became a part of the denomination. After Salazar's daughter refused to join them and left Hogwarts with her friends and brothers the Vayaen killed the rest of her family, including Salazar himself. His daughter has never been found, but her friends and brothers were killed as well a couple of years later."

"Do the Vayaen have anything to do with the Chamber of Secrets?"

Ginny smiled as she saw Marita trying to draw a conclusion from the information given. Jayden shrugged mutely because he didn't know either, something that had not occurred before.

"If they have something to do with the Chamber it will have to be in here."

Dev waved with the small book she had been holding for all this time while she said it, smiling broadly at everyone else.

"You won't find it in Von Denen Verdammten," Alisha whispered. "I think something as important as that will be in the Restricted Section."

"Or maybe in Dumbledore's office."

"Jayden, why don't you try to find out if there are other books written about Salazar and maybe also the Vayaen?" Ginny asked suddenly. "I think I can ask Draco, who has a permission slip for the Restricted Section, to find them in there."

"Good idea."

"Well, it seems like we have a mission," Alisha said with a grin. "Slytherins unite!"

Alisha's last words were certainly something that would have been appreciated by every member of Slytherin House, be it former student or student today, Ginny thought suddenly. And now she knew, for the first time since the Sorting, where she belonged.

Slytherin was her home.

*******

Durmstrang School For Magic, somewhere in Bulgaria.

Natasha Iranova wasn't very happy as she finished reading the letter Colin Damara had sent both her and Shanna Malfoy this morning. Shanna seemed to take the news well, Natasha noticed, but still looked pale and uneasy.

She shook herself mentally. Shanna was always pale, and usually looked out of place in her Muggle clothing at Durmstrang (unless she wore her cloak to cover them). Natasha, however, had not been calmed down at all by the letter. If anything, she was even more anxious now.

The Zeppo is a group that was started by Salazar Slytherin's daughter Taigan when she was on the run for the Vayaen. The Zeppo commanded loyalty and respect from all of the members of Slytherin House, member of the group or not. It would be so that the members of The Zeppo would protect Slytherin in times of need. 

Natasha snorted with laughter as she entered her office. They were a bunch of good protectors, she thought sarcastically. You-Know-Who still had been able to rise to full power, thanks to some Slytherins breaking the chain in order to follow his rules instead of the rules The Zeppo had set up. And yet The Zeppo existed and was very up-to-date about any actions made by former Death Eaters. Natasha realized that she lived in a very strange world sometimes as she read the letter again.

The Chamber of Secrets had been opened. Melanie Smith had moved from Salem to London to keep an eye on the latest news coming from the Ministry of Magic, while Severus Snape was keeping everyone updated from his position as a teacher at Hogwarts. Something was going to happen soon – Natasha felt it coming like everyone else who was remotely familiar with You-Know-Who's way of taking action – and The Zeppo did not trust it.

It was reason enough for all of them to be extra alert. Natasha and Shanna would have to work together at Durmstrang, while Gudrun Halonen and Fabian Listara would keep an eye on anything strange happening in Scandinavia. In Holland they had Willem Van Der Woord, and in Germany Heidi Grünberg. Other members were scattered across the world, and Natasha could not help but feel a bit of admiration for Colin Damaro who was the unofficial leader of The Zeppo. 

But right now she had a pile of Charms essays to check, so she did not dwell on the Chamber issue anymore. Somebody else was thinking about it though, and found the truth in books that should have remained closed...

"The Heir of Slytherin was Taigan, his daughter and most important support," Shanna spoke into the silence the library offered. Some of her students frowned as they passed by, but Shanna did not pay them any attention as she continued: "Slytherin had two other children, twins to be precise, who went by the names Jored and Josselin."

Shanna's eyes widened as she read this, because this piece of information was unknown to her. It was not exactly public knowledge that Salazar'd had any children, let alone three. She continued reading out aloud, because she thought it would help her focus. 

"Salazar Slytherin was a part of a denomination. Taigan never liked them, and when they asked her to join them she refused. Taigan and her brothers fled Hogwarts together but in the end Taigan was the only one to escape the fate of death. The people he once called his friends killed Salazar and the Slytherin bloodline was ruined.

Taigan had been pregnant when she fled and had given birth to a healthy daughter while staying in Romania. This daughter, known to everyone as Desde, married and got children as well. After that it was a fact that the Slytherin bloodline was thin but still present within every daughter the remaining Slytherins gave birth to. 

This line was interrupted about sixty years ago when Gwendolyn Williams married a Muggle called Tom Riddle and gave birth to a healthy boy called Tom, named after his father who had thrown Gwendolyn out of his house after he found out that she was a witch. Gwendolyn died before she could give birth to any daughter, making the young Tom the new Heir of Slytherin.

What few people know is that Tom Marvolo Riddle is now called Lord Voldemort. The exact reason for his turning from good to evil is not known, but I believe that it has something to do with his girlfriend Laura Malfoy who died in his sixth year at Hogwarts at the hands of Aurors. Laura had been pregnant with Tom's child and this child supposedly died in Laura's womb. Some people, however, believe that Tom and Laura had found a way to keep their baby alive if Laura would die and used this way that fateful night."

Shanna stared at the pages of the book in disbelief and closed it with a snap. She did not want to read anything else because this was something she had to deal with first. Voldemort, in love with a Malfoy? And their child that might be alive after all this time? 

She put her head in her hands and sighed. Just when she thought she knew everything about the Chamber of Secrets and Slytherin she found something new out that could change people's lives forever. For better... or for worse.

*******

A Thousand Years Ago, Hogwarts.

_"But what about father?"_

_The blonde girl looked at her brother questioningly when she asked him about their father. Her brother sighed and said:_

_"You know that father would betray us to the Vayaen, Teggie. He should not come with us."_

_"They will kill him, Joss," the girl whined. "I do not want to leave without father!"_

_"We may not have a choice in the matter."_

_If anyone looked upon the boy referred to as Joss and then at the other boy who had made that last comment those looking would wonder if they saw double. The two look exactly alike, even for twins this is uncommon, and talk in exactly the same way. I supposed that Teggie would know a way to keep them apart because the twins are her brothers but she did not talk much to anyone these days._

_"What do you mean?"_

_I asked the other boy shakily, because I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach that I recognized as pure fear. He smiled grimly and replied:_

_"The Vayaen have found out that Teggie is not in the building. At least, not in the corridors that are known to them. We will have to go now, if we don't want to be found. Or do you think that father will not tell them where we are?"_

_"Jored, father would never tell on me," Teggie said firmly. "But you're right. We cannot stay here."_

_"Father would not tell on you, no," Joss' whisper was cold, dangerous even. "But he would tell on Jored and me. We are his illegitimate children, remember?"_

_"What about me?"_

_Jored's grin was shark-like as he looked at me after I had finished the question, eyes twinkling with what father always described as the 'Slytherin Malice'. Teggie must have recognized the look on her brother's face, because she laid a hand on his arm before he started to speak._

_"You are a Gryffindor, Jessica," he said slowly. "Where we are going there is no place for anyone of your House, let alone the daughter..."_

_"Jess is coming with us," Teggie interrupted. "I need her to be my mid-wife."_

_She put one hand over her slightly rounded belly in a protective manner and I suddenly remembered why I thought of her as my best friend. I trusted her more than anyone else in the world, with the possible exception of my father, and I knew that she needed me now more than ever._

_"As you wish," Joss said with a smile. "I trust you, Jess. Don't let anything happen to my sister or my baby that she is carrying, or else."_

_I nodded quickly as I saw Ren Montague hurry towards us, sweating and panting. I smiled at Teggie – a little smile that she returned quickly – and walked towards the group of Slytherins the children of Salazar thought of as friends._

_I could not help but wonder if anyone of them had thought about joining the Vayaen. Maybe there was a spy among us, and I knew that in time I would be the one to be accused of that crime, or maybe we would not get out of the Chamber at all. I caught a flash of red hair and I grinned as I realized that it was Ren's sister Jade, one of my friends as well as Teggie's. _

_As we trudged along in a slightly disordered line through the pipes I instictively knew that I would never see my family again. We would be forced to run from the Vayaen for the rest of our lives. I would never be present at Hogwarts again; never taste the delicious food the House Elves made for us, and never know if Jenna Prewett would marry Harold Bones. Suddenly every small thing seemed important to me._

_I blinked a couple of tears back as I thought of my family. Nobody knew that I was leaving now, in the middle of the night, together with some Slytherins. My father would ask Salazar if he knew where I was hiding, and he would tell him. _

_He would speak about the many nights I spent laughing and joking around with the twins, how many times I had played games with Teggie when she was not feeling well, and he would also tell him about the days I had tried to explain the exact art of Herbology to his wife._

_My father would get very angry – he loses his temper easily – and my mother would simply refuse to believe that I hung out with these 'low-life good for nothing Slytherins'. My siblings don't care about me usually, but now I thought that they would._

_And as I walked away from everything that was familiar I felt an arm close tightly around my waist. Jored Slytherin nodded silently at me and brushed the tears that were welling up in my eyes away. I smiled at him – it was a weak smile of the one who had nothing to lose – and he smiled back. _

_Teggie, who was walking behind us together with Joss and Ren, winked at me as I looked over my shoulder to see how she was doing. She pointed her long, thin indexfinger at Jored and then at me... and I grinned as I realized what it meant. _

_Jored had only refused to take me along because he cared about me. He didn't want me to lead a life full of pain and misery. I smiled inwardly because I had asked myself the question that was shaping in both of our minds a million times before. _

_In a time when nobody plays by the rules you will have to set up your own scoreboard. If you don't you will fall from the highest mountain people place you on when they meet you. Somehow falling didn't seem too bad... if you fell along with everybody else._

_Is there still a place for love today? Or will we keep falling forever without any net catching us? I do not know the answers. But I know one thing, and that is the only thing that matters in anyone's life._

_If nobody wants to be the net to catch you as you fall you will have to shape the net yourself. It will only hold when you have known love and hate before. _

_I have felt hatred, yes. I still hate the Vayaen with all my heart. And now I know what love is. Love is something unconditional that two people share with one another. _

_Do you love me?_

_Such a simple question, but a hard one at the same time. Some things are better left in the middle, without saying anything about them. This question was one of those things I would never answer, and he would never answer either._

_We felt the answer in our hearts._

**~*~**

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	5. Ashes To Ashes

**~*~**

**Chapter Five: Ashes To Ashes.**

**~*~**

_All the colors turn to grey_

_Everything dies to be born again_

_There's no need to be afraid_

_I'll hold on until we fade away_

- Autumn Harmony, For My Pain.

**~*~**

Tom watched Ginny with a grim sort of satisfaction. The little girl did not know that he was the cause of her problems, nor that he had made her write the threatening message on the wall. Yet he was worried.

He was worried about her friends who had proved to be quite intelligent, and he was worried about the trance she slipped into after he left her body. Her friends could be taken care of, no doubt about that, but her trance...

Tom knew that he'd had quite the same reaction to his powers, trance included, but he had no idea about the seriousness of the cause. Laura had always kept quiet about the exact state he was in while he was in a trance, and to see the same thing overcome Ginny was really scary. He thought back on Laura with a sigh. So like Ginny she was, and yet so different...

Being raised like a Malfoy in every way had not been easy for Laura, he mused. And when he had met her for the first time he had pulled her down into his little world, a world full of uncertainties, without thinking about the consequences for her. She was a very powerful woman in her own right but even she'd had trouble with him and the powers given to him through his mother's blood. 

He sighed as he remembered Laura's funeral, which was also the funeral of their child that had never been offered a chance to live...

"We are gathered here today to prove how deeply we loved and cherished the one known as Laura Seideira Malfoy," the vicar said. "She parted from us with a laugh and a tear, showing us exactly what kind of person she was. And we are also here to bless the child called Virginia Aurélie who died within her mother's womb, not knowing about the great evil her mother had to face. We commit their bodies to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. May they rest in peace for eternity."

Tom felt a tight knot place itself in his stomach as he recalled how the two women he had loved deeply died in his arms, killed by the people who were supposed to offer the wizarding world protection: the Aurors. 

_"Take this necklace and give it to the redheaded woman who shall be under your command one day. Tell her she should not keep it for herself, but should give it to one of her friends. My love shall live on in that friend until..."_

_"Laura!"_

_The redheaded girl closed her eyes despite Tom's cries, looking peaceful and sweet in his arms. He sighed and bowed his head as one single tear rolled down his cheek. _

_"I vow to you, Laura," he began, "that I shall never forget you. The Prewetts, the Clearwaters and the Potters shall regret this day for the rest of their lives. For with your death I have been given the will and the strength to become the man I was destined to become, and the wizarding world shall mourn for the deaths of the members of those families as well as it will mourn for you."_

_When he finally looked up his eyes were red, red like the blood of his beloved spilt on the stones. This night would be remembered as the night in which one man who would one day be known as Lord Voldemort sealed the fate of many families…_

*******

Ron Weasley was seething with anger. Not just because he had failed his History of Magic assignment miserably, but also because his sister had come into the Great Hall talking with the Slytherins. How Ginny could be happy with them he did not know. He wouldn't want to be in Slytherin for anything, not even for a thousand Galleons. The Slytherins were cunning little menaces with a very big ego. You just had to look at Draco Malfoy to see the embodiment of a Slytherin, Ron thought, but not at his sister! 

And yet there she was, laughing about a silly prank with one of the Slytherin Prefects. It was almost like she felt at home there, but Ron knew Ginny well enough to know that it was all an act. Or was it?

He frowned as his sister slammed her fist down on the table as she glared at Pansy Parkinson who had just said something. Ginny's lips curled into a sneer as she said something to Pansy, which caused the older girl to blanch visibly. The Prefect seated next to Ginny put a hand on her shoulder reassuringly, causing her to look up at him in confusion. He smiled and whispered something in her ear.

"Zeynep!"

An indignant shout was heard at the Slytherin Table as Pansy jumped up screaming. The shout came from the other Prefect, who was now making her way down to Ginny's little group. Zeynep Zabini got up and stretched himself to his full length; causing him to tower over everyone at his House Table, seated or not.

"What is it?"

His innocent question was loud enough for the whole Hall to hear, making students look at the Slytherins in interest. The female Prefect's words were more of a hiss and Ron could not hear what she said. Some Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs started to giggle though, so it must have been funny. 

Ginny's little group burst out laughing as Zeynep replied with a very serious face. Ron felt a pang of guilt as he saw Ginny glare at him before she started to laugh along with the others. Even the female Prefect had to surpress a grin as Zeynep continued to make wild gestures. However, Ron's attention was torn away from them by the arrival of Harry and Hermione and he did not look at the Slytherin Table again.

This was exactly what Ginny had hoped for, and she nudged Natalya. Her friend looked at her and then over to the Gryffindors before she waved for some Slytherins to come over to them. When everyone was seated (including Zeynep and Verice) Alisha began:

"In the light of recent events we have decided that we should know something more about the Chamber of Secrets and the family connected to it. Now we are proud to announce that we have found something out, namely..."

"Will you get to the point?" Draco interrupted. "I don't know about you but I still have a life to attend to."

"...The Vayaen built the entire Chamber and designed the concept of Parseltongue," Alisha continued after sending a glare towards Draco. "Parseltongue is the language spoken by snakes and sometimes by wizards and witches. But unlike other languages this language can only be spoken by those with a blood connection to Salazar Slytherin himself."

"Meaning?" Dev asked with a frown. "That the Vayaen were a bunch of lunatics?"

"No!" Ginny hissed and continued: "It means that the Heir of Slytherin is in the school at the moment, maybe even present here in the Great Hall."

"It could be one of us," Emmanuelle Landon said thoughtfully. "But we already knew that!"

"There is a point in all of this," Zeynep snapped. "The Heir alone is able to speak Parseltongue, which means that we can test him or her by just learning the spell to conjure a snake."

"And then what?" Kelly Quentin asked. "Go around the school and set a snake on anyone who could be linked to Slytherin?"

"Just on Potter," Draco replied. "He was found in the place the crime was committed. If anyone is a suspect, it has to be Potter. And one of us is going to unmask him."

"There will be a Dueling Club," Verice added. "Maybe we can try to unmask Potter then with half of the school present because that would make the hero fall. But we are going to need Snape's help."

"Why? I don't feel like asking him if could kindly let one of us duel with Potter because we think that he is the Heir of Salazar," Kelly said. "He is not stupid, he will know when we lie to him."

"Who says that we are going to lie?" Draco asked softly. "I hate Potter, as you all know, and Snape knows that I want to beat Potter with something. A wizard duel sounds perfect to me."

"But what do we do when he is indeed the Heir? Dumbledore is not going to believe us with the little evidence we might have then. Snape and Sinistra are no-goes, and our parents cannot do anything," Dev whispered. "Think about it, guys! Potter is going to win this game of chess from us no matter what we do to stop him. Within a couple of months the school shall be closed."

"There is still The Zeppo," Verice said. "I think that they will be able to help us."

"The Zeppo?" Emmanuelle drawled. "Pray tell, is it a Muggle organisation for the Rights of the Animals?"

"The Muggle organisation for the Rights of Animals is called the WWF, you idiot!" Natalya hissed. "The Zeppo is a Slytherin-based group with members from all over the world. But they have disappeared since the War, so we won't be able to contact them anyway."

"We have to get to class," Ginny said before anyone could reply to Natalya's words. "Right now I just want everybody to focus on the upcoming Quidditch Match. The Chamber is still open and Harry is not doing anything except for being a Gryffindor prat, so we can take a break from work."

The Slytherins parted from each other in silence. Emmanuelle, Verice, and Kelly went to Divination while Zeynep and the first-years went up to the second floor for Charms and Transfiguration, only stopping to chat with Marcus Flint about the upcoming game.

None of them knew that at this very moment Tom was planning things for his next move, nor did they know that Melanie Smith had been taken to St Mungo's a couple of days ago after a very traumatising vision that had predicted the rise of Voldemort...

*******

Vuori College For Witchcraft, Savonlinna, Finland.

"You need to get some sleep, dearie," Frida Amundsen commented as Gudrun walked into the Staff Room. "Although I think that a nice bath would do you good as well."

Gudrun glared at the plump Transfiguration teacher before flopping down on one of the couches. Wendy Jennings, the Divination teacher, scooted over to Gudrun and grabbed her hand. She gasped and exclaimed as she traced her index finger down Gudrun's lifeline:

"I have never seen this before in my life! Dangers are on your path, my dear, and one of them shall be fatal to you. Your future is not very bright..."

"Have you seen the pile of tests I still have to correct?" Gudrun interrupted. "Anyone with a brain can tell that these are the dangers you spoke of, and I daresay that the fifth-year tests will be fatal for me."

Nigel Petersen, who taught Potions, snorted with laughter as he put his book down to watch the unfolding scene in front of him. Wendy looked scandalized as Gudrun continued:

"And I think that my lovelife is going to go downhill as well. After all, who would want to date a ghost?"

"Your fate is hardly something to joke about," Wendy replied. "Be careful, danger is coming your way."

She strode out of the room with dignity, muttering something about a tarot reading with the fourth years. When the door had slammed shut behind her the whole room burst out laughing.

"And once again it proves how valuable Slytherins are," Bibbi Andersson giggled. "You, Gudrun, are an absolute superwoman."

"I am too tired to get up and bow to everyone," Gudrun said lazily. "And may the Lord upstairs forgive me but I really don't like that woman."

"Who does? She is like Poison Ivy from Batman, minus the 'I want to control the world' part."

Bibbi shrugged as everyone looked at her in disbelief. Being the Muggle Studies teacher she was used to these looks by now and wasn't bothered by them anymore. Gudrun shrugged and closed her eyes, but opened them again as she heard a hoot from an owl outside.

"It's for you," Nigel said and tossed the letter to Gudrun who opened it quickly. "It has to be seeing as the Slytherin seal is on it."

_Gudrun,_

_I cannot tell you everything in this letter, but you have to stay at Vuori no matter what kind of message you receive from us later on. Promise me that you will take my advice to heart._

_Albania is still safe and we have not heard anything on the news about strange disappearances. It is Hogwarts everybody is worried about, and our concern is especially the bad name recent events will give Slytherin House. _

_Apparently the Chamber has been opened and a Squib's cat was Petrified. I guess that you already knew this, but I am merely refreshing your selective memory. The real news comes from London this time, from St Mungo's. I hope that you are seated because I know that this news is going to shock you when you read it._

_Mel's condition has been going backwards ever since she arrived in Britain. The only coherent thing she talks about now is a second Heir from Salazar's bloodline. The doctors at St Mungo's fear that she will not recover completely from these traumatizing visions and they fear for her life if they continue at this rate. I don't know the details but Catherine told me in a letter that Mel does not respond to anything she says, so it must be pretty bad. _

_I cannot say anything else because my fear of anything dark and spooky is bigger than my fear for your life. You are safe at Vuori, Gudrun, so stay there no matter what happens to Mel. She is strong enough to survive without you. _

_Love always,_

_Heidi._

"I have got to go."

Gudrun got up despite protests from the other Staff members. Frida was the only one who noticed Gudrun's pale face as the Dark Arts teacher left the room. 

Outside Gudrun slid down against the nearest wall and read the letter again. She shook her head mutely before putting her head down in her arms. Slowly she started to cry, not caring about who would pass by and hear it, letting her emotions take her over for the first time in years.

Mel... I need you... I cannot do this all by myself...

Her thoughts were directed towards her friend who was currently staying in St Mungo's thanks to Tom Marvolo Riddle. She wanted to be with Mel in this difficult time, not in a distant country with nobody to talk to, she wanted to support her friend and let her know that she cared about her. 

"How am I supposed to fight when I don't know what I am fighting for?"

Her voice was aggravated and clearly had a tone in it that suggested weakness and grief. Her crying had ceased as she thought things over and she got up slowly, wiping the trail of tears away before striding towards her room in the South Tower. 

"Sometimes you do not start fighting to make things draw to an end, but to create a beginning..."

Her mother had been right about everything. The Aurors had wanted to end something but instead of that they had created the foundation of Lord Voldemort's entire being: grief and hatred. It was not more than fair that the Slytherins, fifty years later, would heal the wounds inflicted on the name of their House.

It was time to contact Severus.

*******

56 Years Ago, Hogwarts.

_"Riddle, Tom!"_

_The blackhaired boy walked towards the Sorting Hat slowly and put it on after an encouraging nod from Professor Dumbledore, the Deputy Headmaster. _

_"Ah! Gwendolyn's son, finally!"_

_"Have you known my mother?"_

_"You could say that," the Hat chuckled. "She was so like you, young Riddle. You are clever, you have disregard for rules, and you are brave to the bone. Now where to put you? Founder's Blood, I see. That will do, yes, that will do just fine. I know a good place for you, Riddle... SLYTHERIN!"_

_The Slytherins applauded their new House member with not that much enthusiasm, seeing as the name Riddle was a Muggle one. They did not like House members with pureblooded parents that much, but Tom could not be bothered with the small round of applause._

_"Seideira, Laura!"_

_Tom watched the redheaded girl with interest as she put the Sorting Hat on like he had done moments before. She grinned broadly as the Hat declared her a Slytherin and skipped over to the seat next to Tom. Unlike him, however, she got cheers from every single member of their House. _

"Told you we would be here together," Laura whispered to Tom as the Sorting continued. "We will have a great time in Slytherin... mark my words!"

**~*~**

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	6. Helpless

**~*~**

**Chapter Six: Helpless.**

**~*~**

_Cherish the moment_

_Tower the skies_

_Don't let the dreamer_

_Fade to grey like grass_

_No falling for life_

_A gain for every loss_

_Time gathered me_

_But kept me flying_

**- Away, Nightwish.**

**~*~**

Ginny did not see much of Draco for the rest of the week because the upcoming Quidditch Match consumed his time completely. This left her with a perfect opportunity to talk to Tom, something she was very grateful for. However, as things go if you have friends, she found that she could not spend all of her time writing in her diary. 

She knew that the Gryffindors thought that they would win on Satuday but she also found out that the Slytherins were very keen on beating the Gryffindors this time. Ginny hoped that her House would win, giving them at least something to be proud of after half of the school accused them of opening the Chamber of Secrets, but she also thought that Harry Potter was a better Seeker than Draco. 

As eleven o'clock approached the Slytherins made their way down to the stadium, hoping to see their team win. Unsurprisingly, the Gryffindor team walked onto the pitch amidst cheers. The Slytherins hissed angrily for a moment at the other Houses' obvious prejudice and then started to cheer their own team on with great enthusiasm. Both teams sped up into the air after their captains had given each other a handshake.

"And Johnson takes possession of the Quaffle, but is soon knocked off course by a Bludger directed at her by Zabini. Flint has the Quaffle now and is speeding towards the goals together with Adrian Pucey, and he scores! Slytherin lead ten to zero."

Ginny vaguely heard Lee Jordan comment on the match but her attention had been drawn to Harry Potter who was flying high above the pitch together with Ginny's brothers Fred and George. Marita, who had followed Ginny's gaze, blinked as she saw a Bludger being hit away by one of the twins and then turning in mid-air to go after Harry again. 

"Someone's must have tampered with the Bludger," Dev said suddenly. "I don't know how that somebody succeeded in it though, because all Quidditch things are locked up in Madame Hooch's office until a match is being played."

"I don't care how somebody could get into Hooch's office," Ginny said grimly, "but I want to know who would do such a thing."

The Gryffindors soon called for a time-out amidst jeers of the Slytherins, who were now leading with sixty to zero. Rain began to fall quite heavily and the crowd was soon soaked through and through. The teams resumed play after a while as the first-year Slytherins started to talk quietly with each other about the Bludger. Harry was now forced to make all kinds of dives and turns to avoid getting hit by the aggressive ball. Nobody else seemed to notice the seriousness of the situation, because when Harry turned upside down the crowd laughed heartily. Dev was on the verge of losing her temper and hissed angrily: 

"Why won't they just call it a day? What is wrong with the Gryffs? Are they afraid to lose from us?"

The rest of her questions could not be heard seeing as Ginny had just screamed because the rogue Bludger had – finally – hit Harry. The crowd watched with anxious silence as Harry made his way towards Malfoy down below him. Malfoy careened out of Harry's way, something he should not have done, letting the Gryffindor Seeker catch the Snitch.

The Slytherins groaned - although some were busy calling the Gryffindors all sorts of names - and most of them did not notice Harry faint and fall off his broomstick. Natalya, however, did notice and tugged at Ginny's sleeve as she pointed at Lockhart who had now reached Harry. They did not see what happened to Harry seeing as most of the Gryffindors were crowding onto the pitch but they heard whispers about an arm and some removed bones.

"Better luck next time," Blaise Zabini sighed. "I knew that us leading with points was too good to be true."

"We gave it our best shot," Marita said to her. "That's the only thing that really counts."

"Flint seems to think otherwise."

Ginny pointed at the pitch where Marcus Flint was busy yelling at Draco, who did not seem too happy with their loss. The Slytherins made their way back to the school quietly, still disappointed and angry, while they saw the Gryffindors and the other Houses celebrate. 

"One day," Blaise said softly, "we will win. One day our House shall not be looked upon with fear, but with pride. I hope I'll live long enough to witness it."

Natalya made a non-committal sound whereas Trevor and Nelson nodded in appreciation. Pansy Parkinson put one arm around her sister Dev before saying:

"We need to keep our House pure, Blaise. The other Houses may have Muggle-loving fools in their midst, but we don't have any Muggle-born scum in ours. We will win someday."

"Blood is not the most important thing," Verice said softly. "Muggleborns can be smart too, just look at that Granger girl for example, and we have some half bloods in our House. Do you want to throw them out, Parkinson? I know for one thing that some of our best students have a Muggle parent. Let's see how we will win the House Cup if they are not with us anymore."

"I didn't mean it like that," Pansy said with an irritated voice. "I just wanted to point something out. The day our House gets a Mudblood in it is the day the name Slytherin won't mean anything to people."

"Where are we going?" Jayden asked all of a sudden. "This is not the way to the common room."

The group looked around, startled. They were standing in a dimly lit hallway that was completely deserted. Dev, however, recognized it instantly and stepped around the corner. 

"The place of attack," she whispered. "Over there is the writing on the wall."

Ginny blinked as she took the scene in. She had not been here since Mrs Norris had been attacked, just like the other first-years she avoided this place, but there was something strangely familiar about it all... 

"I... child of Salazar... shall not be denied. Enemies... beware! Something in the walls..."

Ginny groaned, making the others turn around and look at her. Blaise grasped Ginny's arm and held the shaking redhead upright. Ginny closed her eyes to shut the noises out, noises that did not only come from her friends but also from the school itself...

She ran down the flights of stairs with her friends following shortly behind. They made their way through the corridors towards the Slytherin common room and stopped in front of the entrance. Jayden leaned against the wall and panted: 

"What was that about?"

"I had to get out of there," Ginny whispered and then gave the password. "Pureblood!"

Any further questions were drowned out by the noises inside the common room. Draco and Zeynep spotted the group soon and walked towards them with huge smiles on their faces. 

"Where have you been?" Draco shouted over the music. "I missed you!"

"What are you doing?" Blaise hissed. "We have lost the Match, in case you didn't know!"

"Don't fret, little sister," Zeynep replied. "We are celebrating our loss. Nobody ever lost with the Nimbus Two Thousand And One broomsticks."

"Nobody except us."

Natalya muttered before walking towards Alisha and Thomas, who were busy eating as much sweets as was possible. The group scattered across the room and blended into the crowd. Ginny spotted Jayden dancing with Dev and Pansy at the same time and caught a glimpse of Blaise and the twins before they disappeared from view.

"Why were you so late?" Draco whispered in her ear. "I was a bit worried."

"We got lost," Ginny replied. "If you will excuse me now, I want to get something in the dorm."

She ran to the other end of the room and closed the door to the dormitories softly behind her. Draco shook his head for a minute before joining his goons Crabbe and Goyle who were at the food table with some third years. When Ginny returned with her diary clutched in her arms she seated herself near one of the fireplaces in a fluffy green chair. She did not have time to write in the diary though, because Natalya whisked her away to dance to a very energetic song by the wizarding band Sedis.

"Did you see Flint yell at Draco?" Zeynep asked Ginny as they took a break. "The rest of us got the full blast of his bad mood too."

"At least Flint didn't let the Gryffs score any goals," Ginny replied. "You were better than them, you know."

"Thanks to the brooms, yes," Zeynep sighed. "I shudder to think what would have happened if we didn't have them. After all, we have been flattened by them before."

"I was paying more attention to Potter after a while," Ginny said softly. "One of the Bludgers would not leave him alone, did you see that? Refresh my memory and tell me who is on our team again."

"Well, there's Flint. He's the Captain and also a Chaser. Then there is Derrick, a Beater, and Pucey, who is a Chaser. Montague is the third Chaser. Draco is the Seeker and I am the other Beater."

"I love Quidditch," Natalya said brightly. "But I am afraid of heights so I don't play."

She shrugged and tucked a loose strand of her dark hair behind her ear as she grabbed a handful of peanuts. Ginny smiled and made her way back to her chair, this time not disturbed by any of the Slytherins. She started to write and grinned as Tom wrote back.

We lost.

How did you lose? I recall that you told me about your good brooms...

Pure dumb luck from the Gryffindors. Harry saw the Snitch before Draco did, and caught it. Someone had tampered with one of the Bludgers so it circled around Harry all the time and in the end it hit him.

**Is he okay?**

I guess so, but I don't really care. We might have lost this time, but it won't happen again. 

Glad to hear it. But I thought that you had some kind of a crush on Harry, didn't you? 

I don't have a crush on him anymore. He is too damn perfect. 

Nobody's perfect, Ginny. Harry defeated the Dark Lord but it doesn't mean that he is perfect. He is just human like everybody else. What time is it, anyway?

It is ten o'clock. 

**In the evening? What are you doing up so late?**

We are partying. I think that Zeynep said something like 'we are celebrating our loss'. It's very funny seeing as I just saw Emmanuelle and Dev dance the tango together!

**That's funny indeed.**

Ginny wrote on for a while, oblivious to anything around her, before she got up and walked out of the common room with her diary in her hands. As the wall closed itself behind her again she made her way down the corridor but fainted halfway through.

_She lied there on the cold floor for a while before she opened her eyes again and got up. She heard a voice in her mind, a murderous voice that was made of ice._

_"Find an impure one and kill him! Find him, little princess, and kill him."_

_She started to move slowly, and then went faster and faster until she found herself standing at the foot of a marble staircase. _

_"Go up."_

_Ginny did as she was told and she reached the first floor faster than she had imagined. The voice laughed softly and then she was pushed towards one of the many statues near the stairs as the voice continued:_

_"Hide behind it and don't look if you hear something move."_

_"Come to me, servant of Salazar and the Vayaen!" she hissed but deep inside she knew that it wasn't her who was speaking... "Come to me and kill the impure one who will cross my path tonight."_

_Footsteps could be heard as Ginny slid into the shadows. Something was moving in the walls, waiting to kill, waiting... for impurity. It struck and there was a blinding flash of light. Then it moved away, leaving Ginny all by herself with the voice..._

_"Walk down the stairs again and don't pay attention to the impure one. Go back to where you came from my little princess... our job tonight is done."_

_Ginny got out of her secret hiding place and ran down the flight of stairs. She only stopped to look at the impure one, who was clutching a photo camera in his hands that was currently in front of his face. She sighed before running towards the corridor she had come from. The little black book was still there, the silent witness of the events. _

**_Of what events?_**

_Ginny's mind asked suddenly, but she didn't know the answer. She slid down against the cold stone wall and closed her eyes for a moment to regain her senses. When she opened them again she saw red. Everything was red and everything was hurting her..._

She closed her eyes again and was glad to see that when she opened them everything was back to normal. She got up slowly and pocketed the small diary before whispering the password. Although she didn't know what had happened, she knew that it would not be that good. The wall slid open and revealed the still partying common room. Ginny blinked before she walked into the crowd. It seemed like nobody had noticed that she wasn't there (something she was very grateful for) and she was glad that everything was back to normal.

How 'back to normal' everything was became clear on Monday morning. The Slytherin first-years walked down to breakfast, to find that everyone in the Great Hall did not even look at them. Ginny seated herself next to Blaise and asked what was going on. 

"Things are getting worse," was Blaise's reply. "A Gryffindor called Colin Creevey has been Petrified on Saturday night and now everyone suspects one of the Slytherins."

"And Potter has not done it," her brother Zeynep added. "He was still in the Hospital Wing when the attack took place. We do know one thing, however, and that is very important. This thing that can attack both students and animals can move around the school. Creevey was found by Dumbledore on the stairs."

"The stairs?" Ginny asked and shook her head. "It can't have been one of us then. We were all in the common room partying, remember?"

"Someone could have sneaked out," Natalya said with a mouthful of porridge. "We weren't exactly paying attention, you know."

"But still... stairs..."

Ginny shook her head again as if she was trying to remember something. Verice, who came running down the table and squashed herself in between Marita and Jayden (who were now looking very uncomfortable) interrupted her thoughts.

"The Dueling Club is going to start soon," Verice said in a hushed voice. "It's only a matter of weeks before we have a chance to prove that it was Potter."

"I don't believe it anymore," Zeynep said sadly. "Let's face it: we are doomed. It has got to be one of our number. Potter has an alibi."

"If doom is the key to success then I think that you have just made a point," Natalya said slowly. "We can still try Potter, because nobody actually saw him in the Hospital Wing that night. If we play our cards right we might win this round."

"What spell are we going to use?" Verice asked as she grabbed a sandwich. "We need a spell to prove that he could be the Heir of Slytherin."

"Serpensortia," Zeynep replied. "It conjures a snake. If Potter talks to it in Parseltongue we know that it is him who is attacking everyone. Salazar's Heirs bear Salazar's mark: the language."

"It is settled then," Ginny said. "Potter will fall."

In the second week of December Snape came to collect the names of those who would be staying over at Christmas. Ginny signed up and so did Natalya together with Zeynep and Verice who had decided that they wanted to be around in case something bad happened. Almost all of the Slytherins went home for the holidays just like most of the other students.  

There was a trade going on, hidden from teachers, in talismans and amulets. Nobody of the Slytherins acquired anything of the sort – like Natalya said: "when I am a target no stinking sock is going to prevent an attack" – leaving the other students to wonder about their connection to the Heir.

Ernie McMillan, a Hufflepuff, had lost ten House points when he told his friends he suspected all of the Slytherins to be in on the attacks in front of Verice. Zeynep was losing his temper a lot lately and scared flocks of students with his sadistic grin and frequent point taking. Even Ginny did not want to be around him any more than was strictly necessary because his sarcasm struck a nerve with her. The only one who could stand him now was Natalya, who deserted herself more and more from her friends.

Alisha and Dev were studying night and day in the library and Ginny did not see much of them anymore. The boys were busy with their own things and did not have time for her at all. The only first-year left to talk to was Marita, but the girl's arrogance annoyed Ginny to no end after a while. Draco was still one of her most loyal friends and Ginny found herself being more in his company. 

Of course she still had the diary, but she didn't confide in it that much anymore. Something about it made her feel uncomfortable and although she still talked to Tom she felt that she did not need him at all. But something pulled her back to the diary every time, something made her write in it again, something made all her fears and doubts go away...

*******

St Mungo's Hospital For Magical Maladies, London.

"And you say that there has been no change in her condition?"

"None at all."

The doctor sighed and closed the file as the purple haired woman looked up at him with tears in her eyes. He patted her hand softly and got up as he said:

"You told me in one of our previous conversations that Melanie's had this sort of thing before. Can you tell me about it?"

"Yes. It is a long story, so I think that you need to sit down."

"I am listening," the doctor said and seated himself again. "Begin at the beginning."

"I met Mel in the Hogwarts Express," the woman started. "She came into my compartment with two of her friends: Lily Evans and Shanna Malfoy. When I saw her I knew that she was someone special. It was just a feeling and nothing more than that.

This feeling did not change when we were all Sorted into Slytherin together with Gudrun Halonen. Soon we were inseparable and I found myself being drawn into Mel's little world. She never cared much for marks or for House points - in fact the only time when her eyes became strangely alive was with Quidditch - and did not go to Hogsmeade at all. I know that she loved to hear our stories when we came back but she never joined us.

In our fifth year You-Know-Who was attacking the wizarding world regularly. He was in full power then and it was somewhere around Halloween when I noticed a change in Mel's actions. Her voice became softer and she did not look us straight in the eye anymore. She walked around the school silently. 

Of course we found out later on that she was suffering from Lycanthrophy, but that did not have anything to do with her frequent visits to the Hospital Wing. When we asked her about it she said that she needed Dreamless Sleep potions in order to be able to pass her exams with good marks.

I never thought much of it, until I found her in the dorm screaming and clutching her head in agony. She was having a vision that proved to be true later on. She slipped away, just like she did now, and the only thing we could do was stand back and watch as she fought for her life. I hated not being able to help her at all. The Lycanthrophy thing was still an issue and - if that was possible - her condition became worse after the full moon. We feared for her life back then.

After a while she recovered and we graduated from Hogwarts. Lily had passed with flying colors and married James Potter, a Gryffindor, later on. Shanna married with Sirius Black, James' best friend, but the rest of us didn't marry. 

When You-Know-Who attacked Lily and James and was stripped of all power Mel had another vision. It was the last one in a series of premonitions that would prove to be true. Sirius had betrayed the Potters and he also killed a friend of his, Peter Pettigrew. I don't know why, but even though Mel saw everything she refused to believe that Sirius betrayed Lily and James. She said it was just a feeling she had.

Last year, when Harry Potter started his education at Hogwarts, Mel had another vision. I heard that it came true at the end of the school year. In the summer her visions became more frequent and she predicted that the one we fear above all others would rise again. I hoped that she was wrong but when I see her now I believe that she might have been right..."

"How did she recover?" the doctor asked the woman quietly. "Maybe we can do the same thing here."

"That's just the problem. I don't know how she recovered," was the reply. "I just know that she did."

"I have to be honest with you about this, Catherine," the doctor said. "If we don't find a cure soon she could be dead by the next full moon."

"But that's in two weeks..."

**~*~**

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	7. Judgement

**~*~**

**Chapter Seven: Judgement**

**~*~**

_Shot in his eyes, a silver sky,_

_His blood is in my hand (in my hand)_

_I felt his worn, I know he's died_

But now I'm feeling so strange 

- The Secret, Lacuna Coil.

**~*~**

A week later Ginny found herself in the middle of a meeting at breakfast. The note for the Dueling Club had been put up on the notice board, leaving them to discuss their tactics for that evening. 

"I think that Lockhart will pick Potter because they are so much alike," Marita was saying. "They are, after all, equally stupid."

"Potter is a bit smarter than Lockhart," Dev drawled. "He would not wear robes with a purple color."

"He would!" Alisha replied. "Potter is the embodiment of stupidness, Dev, no matter what you say."

"Can we get to the point?"

Kelly was obviously irritated by the constant bickering by the first-years, making her voice sound more aggravated than usual. Zeynep smiled at her and said:

"We have got a brilliant plan. Nothing will go wrong, trust me. Snape will pick Draco to duel and Lockhart will pick Potter. After a couple of _friendly_ spells Draco will use the Serpent Conjuring spell to reveal Potter's true nature. As you know every spell except for the Unforgivables is allowed with Dueling so nobody shall be surprised."

"We need to set the snake on a student," Ginny added. "Potter's good heart will save the student, but with that action he betrays himself."

"Lockhart will try to get rid of it," Natalya said while chewing on a strand of her hair. "We don't set the snake on a student, but he will."

"There is no spell for that!" Verice exclaimed softly. "Our plan is not going to work at all, is it?"

"But there is a spell for altering the direction of spells," Zeynep replied. "I know which, so I will do the honors. Is everything clear?"

The rest of the group nodded and continued eating. After breakfast they went to their classes, but they could not get their mind off their brilliant plan. This resulted in very bad Transfiguration results and a certain lack of focus in Charms, which led to a couple of accidents.

At eight o'clock that evening the Slytherins made their way down to the Great Hall again, together with the majority of the other Houses. They elbowed their way to the front of the crowd and placed themselves in a good position, Zeynep standing slightly aside because of the spell he had to use later on.

Gilderoy Lockhart walked onto the stage looking very stupid in deep plum robes a couple of minutes later, with Snape (who was wearing his usual black robes) in tow. After a moment of introduction by Lockhart Ginny started to lose attention, until Natalya nudged her with her elbow because Lockhart had announced that he would duel with Snape.

Snape used a simple Disarming spell, sending Lockhart off the stage to slam into the wall. Ginny cheered along with the other Slytherins and noticed that Alisha had dissolved into fits of giggles. Lockhart got onto his feet and made a comment that implied that he had known what spell Snape would be using all along. Dev snorted in disbelief, as did Marita, and Ginny wasn't surprised to see that most of the students present were hiding a grin.

Snape and Lockhart then moved through the crowd, putting people into pairs. Snape reached the group of Slytherins and smiled shortly before he paired them all up. Ginny was paired with Natalya, but Draco was whisked off to face Potter. 

"One, two, three!"

As Lockhart gave the start signal Ginny raised her wand and so did Natalya. Ginny was a bit faster, sending Natalya off her feet with a flash of scarlet light. Natalya grabbed her wand that was lying on the floor and pointed her wand at Ginny; who found herself lying flat on her back a moment later. They looked around and saw Dev helping a shaken Marita to her feet while Verice came flying past thanks to a very powerful Disarming spell by Zeynep. 

A haze of greenish smoke hovered over the students as Lockhart called for a stop. Ginny got to her feet quite unsteadily and picked her wand up from the floor. Then the moment came, the moment the Slytherin group had been waiting for...

Lockhart gestured for Draco and Potter to step forward to the middle of the Hall and the crowd backed away to give them room. Zeynep made his way to the front of the crowd to stand next to Natalya, who was still rubbing her sore back. Lockhart counted down to one and the Duel began...

_"Tarantellegra!"_

Potter shouted, making Draco do a kind of quick-step. Draco, however, sneered at Potter and whispered:

_"Rictusempra!"_

Potter started to laugh, but soon used the Disarming spell. But Draco held on to his wand tightly and curled his upper lip before exclaiming:

_"Serpensortia!"_

A black snake fell onto the floor, causing the other students to scream and back away. Ginny did not do anything of the sort and stood her ground, as did the other Slytherins who knew about the plan.

"Allow me!"

Lockhart shouted and brandished his wand at the snake but Zeynep whispered a spell under his breath and pointed his wand at Lockhart's wand before the snake was hit by the spell. The snake flew up into the air and landed in front of a Hufflepuff second year. Potter started to hiss at the snake and it slumped down onto the floor. 

Ginny smiled at Zeynep, who smiled back and gestured at the stunned faces of everyone else as Ginny's brother and Hermione Granger pulled Potter out of the Hall. Verice muttered something about a succeeded mission before she led the way out of the Hall. Ginny was soon talking animatedly with Draco and Natalya about their success; whereas Zeynep was positively beaming and gave ten points to Gryffindor because of a witty comment Oliver Wood made.

The next morning, however, was a very gloomy day. To Draco's utter joy the Herbology lesson had been cancelled thanks to a blizzard raging on the school grounds. But the weather also had other consequences, and Ginny headed down to the Hospital Wing once more for a strong medicine. She decided to stay in bed for the rest of the day and decided to write in her diary. When she was describing the events of last night to Tom she suddenly heard a voice say:

_"Filthy blood... let me rip, let me tear, let me kill..."_

She blinked as she sat up straight and looked around the empty dorm. As she heard the voice again she got up and ran towards the common room. She pulled her wand out and got out of the common room, following the voice as she went. A very haggard looking Kelly stopped her at a corner but she brushed the sixth year away with an excuse and made her way up to the third floor.

"Where are you?"

Ginny was pleased to hear that her voice did not tremble at all as she asked it out loud. Suddenly she found that her legs would not move anymore... as if someone was controlling her movements...

"_Be quiet,_" another voice hissed. It sounded familiar, for some reason, as it continued: "_Hide somewhere and don't look if you hear something move._"

She hid behind a statue of Wendolin the Weird as the voice whispered something in her mind. When it had finished speaking Ginny hissed:

_"Come... come and kill this time... my servant..."_

She heard footsteps and two voices come closer as she slid down behind the statue with her eyes firmly shut. She heard a giant thing slither inside of the walls and then all was quiet.

"_Now get out of here!_" the voice shouted in her mind. "_Out, now!_"

Ginny was more than happy to oblige and did not look back at all as she ran towards the dorm. If she had a very strange sight would have greeted her, namely a boy lying on the floor and a no longer transparent ghost floating in mid-air beside him...

"What is happening to me?" she asked out loud as she got into bed. "What is going on here?"

Everything remained silent and Ginny picked her diary up. Before she could start to write in it, however, her eyes turned red. It only lasted for a couple of seconds, but Ginny was freaked out all the same.

"Has this happened before?"

Deep inside she knew the answer, and it did not please her at all for she feared that she had something to do with the attacks. She put the diary down and closed her eyes as she whispered:

"With Halloween I was right here in the dorm writing to Tom and I must have fallen asleep because I cannot remember anything else. When Colin Creevey was attacked I was in the common room writing to Tom but I don't remember everything that happened that night."

She sat up straight and looked at the diary in disbelief. Slowly, shaking her head as she did so, she picked it up again and said:

"It can't be. Tom cannot be forcing me to do all this. Or can he? Let's face it, I was writing to him every time when an attack took place and I was writing to him just now as well. If there has been another person attacked today I will get rid of the diary."

Satisfied with her own logic, she opened the diary and started to write in it even though she did not trust it completely. It was time for a confronting chat...

**_Tom, what am I going to do? I think I'm going mad... I think I'm the one attacking everyone, Tom!_**

****

**Calm down, little one. What makes you think that you could be attacking the students?**

Like I said before, I don't know where I was on Halloween. I don't really know where I was with the attack on Creevey either...

You were in the dorm on Halloween and in the common room on the day of the attack on Creevey. You were writing to me.

**_How do you know that? Didn't I keep quiet for a while?_**

**No, you didn't.**

That's where you are wrong, Tom. I fell asleep on Halloween while writing to you and I didn't write to you that much during the party in the common room. I am attacking everyone here; I know it! I want you to stop lying to me and I want you to tell me that I have been attacking everyone all along!

Tom kept quiet, as Ginny had expected but hadn't hoped he would. It proved guilt. And as she was lying there with tears threatening to roll down her cheeks the door slammed open and her friends came in.

"There has been another attack!"

Ginny turned her head in Alisha's direction as the blonde Slytherin slumped down on her bed. The other girls seated themselves as well and Natalya whispered:

"I thought that Potter would not try it anymore. And yet there he was, caught in the act and looking as guilty as charged. After the Dueling Club I thought..."

She did not finish her sentence but everyone knew what she meant. They had thought that after the Duel Potter would keep quiet and would not attack anyone. 

"Who was attacked this time?" Ginny asked. "A Gryffindor again?"

"No, it was a Hufflepuff going by the name Justin Finch-Fletchly," Dev replied. "He was the boy from the Dueling Club, the one that almost got attacked by the snake."

"And the weirdest thing was that Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor House ghost, was floating beside him in mid-air. He was not transparent, but as black as the night..."

As Marita added this information Ginny groaned and closed her diary. Natalya watched her with concern as Ginny got up and started to walk around the room like a caged animal.

"Was it really Potter?" she asked suddenly. After nods of confirmation she continued: "Isn't it possible that Potter was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time? What if we have got it all wrong and somebody else is Petrifying all the students?"

"Caught in the act two times and unconfirmed stay in the Hospital Wing another time?" Alisha asked. "That sounds weird, doesn't it?"

"I guess."

The double attack did not make everyone nervous like before, but this time real panic broke out among the students. It seemed like almost nobody wanted to stay over for Christmas this year, unlike other years when everyone looked forward to the feast meal.

The Prefects were having a hard time with controlling everything. Fights had broken out among students from various Houses, one time so badly that Zeynep started to complain about the bad name given to the Slytherins to anyone who wanted to hear it. His complaints did not help and the fights continued at the same rate until Professor Snape gave two months of detention to a Gryffindor who had insulted one of the Slytherins in Potions.

"We should all just leave school," Blaise Zabini said one morning. "That would be much more relaxing for all of us."

"But not very handy," Tracey Davis (another second year) said thoughtfully. "I don't want to be chased out of school by Gryffindors and some loyal followers of Saint Potter. It would ruin the Slytherin name."

"We don't have a name to hold up anymore," Draco replied. "Thank you, Heir of Slytherin, for you have just made your whole House angry."

"We are not leaving!" Ginny exploded suddenly, making other students look at her in disbelief. "We are going to face this, damn it! And if anyone sitting at this table dares to go home and don't come back I will personally make sure that this person's life is not going to be worth anything!"

"We are Slytherins," Zeynep continued in the same fashion. "We are not going to be brought down by anything the other Houses have to say about us! We stay, we fight, and we are going to win!"

"Heir of Slytherin, beware!" Natalya added. "We are not going to take this any longer! One more attack, one more... and we will make sure that your life will be hell from that moment on!"

"We are Slytherins, united we stand," the other members of their House started to say. "Forgive us for we have done things wrong in the past. Lead us not into temptation, but help us defeat this evil even if it is a member of our own House. We will not stand aside this time. We just want to say, even if we never talk to you all again, that we tried. If our best will not be good enough we will take comfort in knowing that we did something. Slytherin Forever!"

After this little speech by all of the Slytherins complete silence filled the Great Hall. Slowly, Snape and Sinistra started to applaud for their old House. Professor Dumbledore smiled at the Slytherins and applauded as well but the other Houses remained silent. However, Ginny was pleased to see that most of the students looked at the Slytherins with newfound respect.

"That was... interesting," Blaise said. "Maybe we solved a large problem with this right now."

"I don't think so," Ginny said as she watched her brother Ron. "Some persons don't accept changes. There will always be persons who don't want us to come near them, and we have to be strong even if the person pushing us away is someone you have known for all of your life."

Draco put an arm around Ginny as he looked at the Gryffindors as well. She buried her head in his shoulder for a minute, leaving Natalya and Alisha to exclaim a simultaneous sigh that suggested jealousy and happiness at the same time. Other Slytherins just looked at the odd couple, some smiling but others frowning.

Over at the Gryffindor table Ron was not very happy. The Slytherin speech hadn't left a good impression on him - as he tried to explain to Hermione the Slytherins would want them to think they did not know who was the Heir - and right now he was trying to calm himself down.

What was happening to his sister? First she held a speech together with some of her Housemates and now she was burying her face in Malfoy's shoulder. Malfoy, of all people! And what was Malfoy doing now? Brushing something away from Ginny's cheek and putting his head on her head! 

Harry and Hermione looked at Ron with concern as his ears turned red with anger. Hermione put a hand on Ron's arm, making him look at her with a frown while Harry asked:

"What are you doing?"

"Look at my sister."

Hermione and Harry turned around, to see Ginny laugh about something Malfoy whispered in her ear. Ron pointed at Ginny's friends as well who were all smiling and making no effort to break the two up. Harry turned back to face Ron and said:

"Maybe it is time for you to apologize to her. You were pretty rude against her and I want to bet that she is being comforted by Malfoy because you are not there for her."

"She is a Slytherin, Harry!" Ron hissed. "They are all evil!"

"You know Ginny for a longer period of time, Ron," Hermione said to him. "You know that she isn't evil. And I think that Harry has got a point with saying that you should apologize."

"She has to apologize to me," Ron replied. "She is the one who ended up in the wrong House. She is the one who is whispering sweet nothings in Malfoy's ear right now. She is the one who should be apologizing for everything. Mum cried when she heard that Ginny had ended up in Slytherin, did you know?"

"She is your sister," Harry said. "Slytherin or not, Malfoy or no Malfoy, she is still a part of your family."

"She isn't," Ron whispered. "I told her not to come back to the Burrow. I said that she wasn't my sister any longer. Not until she admits that the Sorting Hat has made a mistake."

"Oh Ron," Hermione sighed. "What have you done?"

**~*~**

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	8. Survival

**~*~**

**Chapter Eight: Survival.**

**~*~**

_Goodbye to you_

_Goodbye to everything I thought I knew_

_You were the one I loved_

_The one thing that I tried to hold on to_

**- Goodbye To You, Michelle Branch.**

**~*~**

St Mungo's Hospital For Magical Maladies, London.

"Please Mel," Catherine whispered. "Please wake up and make everything okay."

She put a slender hand on Mel's arm and sighed as she looked at her friend. The sheets were as white as snow and gave Mel's pale and thin complexion an extra ghostly look. Mel's lips curled into a smile just a little bit, but Catherine didn't jump up because she knew that this was very normal with comatized people. She realized deep inside that this just might be the last time she'd touch her friend or see her smile. The thought made her stomach churn. 

"Life's no good without you, hun," she whispered into the silence. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she continued with her eyes directed at the ceiling: "Please open your eyes and tell me that you are going to be okay. The Zeppo needs you, the Slytherins need you, and so do I. I need you Mel, right here beside me, all right? Just survive."

"Ms. Fisher?"

Catherine looked up and turned her head into the direction of the kind nurse who smiled at her and motioned for her to get up. She did so, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand. She sniffed just once and released Mel's arm. 

"We will need to take precautions for her... ahum... condition," the nurse continued. "Go home dearie, there is simply nothing that you can do here."

"I want to stay," Catherine choked. "If she never wakes up after this I want to hear it directly."

"She'll wake up."

A new voice, soft and melodic, startled both the nurse and Catherine. Two heads turned towards the doorway where a blonde woman stood, not smiling but also not crying. Blue eyes looked at Mel for a moment before turning back to the two women.

"Gudrun?" Catherine asked, and the woman nodded. "I thought that Heidi had told you to stay put wherever you were! You can't do anything for Mel, and you know it."

"Neither can you," Gudrun pointed out before continuing: "Someone's filling in for me right now at school in Finland. I wanted to be here, just in case. I wasn't with Lily when she died because I was in the hospital myself at the time, as you might remember. That's why I want to be with Mel today: because I might never see her again."

"I understand."

*******

Hogwarts.

Finally the term ended and everyone started to look forward to Christmas. At least: everyone who was still in school looked forward to the feast meal, whereas others boarded the Hogwarts Express to spend the holiday with their families. 

The Slytherin common room looked very cosy with the Christmas decorations, Ginny thought as she slumped down on one of the couches with a good book. Verice and Marcus Flint had decorated the entire common room and the dormitories, helped by Zeynep (at least... he thought he was helping but actually he just stood in their way).

The meals were spent at the far end of the Slytherin Table, away from mutters about their link to the Heir of Slytherin. Now that there were no classes to attend to everyone noticed that there were almost no fights among the different Houses anymore. 

It was just Ginny's family that was causing her to feel miserable right now. Percy had taken to ignoring her whenever he saw her, the twins tried to scare her by jumping out from behind every statue covered with fur and boils, and Ron just looked like he wanted to slap her around her face. Ginny had received a tearstained letter from her mother a couple of weeks ago making her feel a bit guilty about getting into Slytherin.

"You know, the holidays aren't really a good time to think," a voice said suddenly. "You can wait with using your brain until classes have started."

Ginny looked up and smiled as she saw Zeynep standing there with two mugs of hot chocolate. He seated himself graciously and held one mug out for her to take, which she did gratefully. He drank a small amount of hot chocolate before leaning back expectantly and motioning for her to talk.

"What?" asked Ginny, half-grinning and half-serious. "I don't recall asking you to sit down and comment on my thoughts, mister Prefect."

"Who says that I am commenting?" Zeynep looked at her with one of his eyebrows raised before continuing: "I just want to hear what is making you look so sad."

"And then you'll comment," Ginny sighed. "I was just thinking about my family, that's all."

"That's all?" Zeynep repeated weakly. "Honey, the only people that I ever saw looking so sad as you do now were members of my family at the funeral of my grandmother. What's wrong _this _time?"

"It's just..." Ginny hesitated for a moment but continued as Zeynep nodded encouragingly. "My whole family hates me for being in Slytherin. My mother cried and said that I should change Houses, and my brothers either ignore me or try to scare me to death. That hurts, you know."

"I don't think they hate you," Zeynep said thoughtfully. "You grew up in a family full of Gryffindors, that's why it's so difficult for them to think of you as a Slytherin. Your mother would have expected you to get into Gryffindor too, that is why she cried and told you to change Houses. One of your brothers is a Prefect and therefore should know better than to ignore you but I think that the twins are just dealing with it in the way of scaring you to death."

"What about Ron?"

"There are no words to describe him with," was the answer. "You are his sister no matter what he says to you, and you shall return to your home this summer. Don't be afraid of him, and don't be angry with him either. He is just trying to deal with it, okay?"

"Why is it such a big deal to be a Slytherin?" Ginny asked angrily as she took a sip of her hot chocolate. "Nobody would act this way if I had been a Hufflepuff or a Ravenclaw."

"Slytherins are connected to evil," Zeynep replied. "Most members of our House are pure blooded maniacs with a love for everything dark and spooky."

"Is it because of You-Know-Who?"

"Most of it is, yes," Zeynep sighed. "But Grindelwald also had a large amount of influence on the Slyths. I think that we have been on the wrong side so much in the past that people hold on to their prejudices about us. Those people have never talked with us before or they'd know the difference between good and bad Slytherins."

"Some have talked with us," said Ginny, thinking of her family. "But still... those prejudices remain."

"I meant that they never really talked with us," Zeynep replied quickly. "Unless trading insults is called talking these days..."

"To Ron it is certainly a way of talking," Ginny laughed heartily. "I think that Draco is still winning, though. Must be the Slytherin spirit keeping him alive."

"I forget constantly that your family cannot stand the Malfoys. How did they respond to your little 'bond of friendship'?"

"I haven't told them yet."

Zeynep whistled softly and brushed his tiny braids back over his shoulder before grabbing a cookie from the table. He looked at Ginny questioningly and said: 

"You do realize that you have to tell them sooner or later, don't you? If you don't tell them now they will go berserk when they find out."

"I realize that, yes," Ginny replied. "What's with your new hairstyle anyway?"

"Lya thought that it would be funny to braid my hair," Zeynep grimaced. "She did it this morning and said that I looked 'dead cute'."

"That's the way Natalya would have put it, indeed," Ginny grinned. "I think that it looks good, although I prefer them hanging loose."

"So do I, but I don't have the heart to tell her because it took her a while to braid them this way."

"I won't tell her either," Ginny said and put her hand on her heart. "You know, you seem nicer right now than you did before."

"I have a life full of stress," Zeynep smiled. "My OWLs are coming up soon and I have to learn loads. That is why I have been so ill-tempered lately."

"And yet you find time to help Lya with Charms," Ginny said accusingly. "You can't be that busy then."

"She is a fast learner."

They sat in silence for a while after that so that Ginny's mug was soon empty. Zeynep took a longer while and ate another cookie before putting his mug down on the table as well.

"I feel much better now," Ginny said with a hint of surprise in her voice. "Thanks."

"I think that it was the chocolate," Zeynep laughed. "It makes people feel better."

"It wasn't the chocolate," Ginny said after a short silence. "It was you, listening to me and talking with me. Thanks, mister Zabini."

"You are welcome, miss Weasley," was the reply. "Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go and see how Lya is doing with the Levitation spell."

He got up and walked over to Ginny's side of the table, making her look up at him in surprise. He kissed her forehead softly before walking out of the common room, not looking back at her to see her reaction. Ginny smiled and picked her book up again, this time looking as though all exams had been cancelled.

Christmas morning dawned, and the Slytherins were pleased to see that it had snowed. Ginny's presents included a handy pocketbook with spells from Alisha and a very cool photoalbum made by Verice and Zeynep, who had taken pictures of Ginny's friends without them knowing about it. There was also a hand-knitted Weasley sweater in the colors green and silver, making Ginny feel a bit better because now she knew that her mother hadn't forgotten about her.

No one could fail to enjoy Christmas dinner at Hogwarts. Ginny went down to the Great Hall and saw that the rest of the Weasleys were wearing their sweaters as well, and felt anger boiling inside as Ron scowled at her. Draco was making snide remarks about Harry's new sweater, until Ginny pointed out to him that she was wearing such a sweater as well.

"I am a real pig," Alisha said while rubbing her stomach. "Look at my plate!"

The others looked and saw that the blonde girl had piled a hoard of food on it even though she had already eaten at least a dozen chocolates that afternoon. Dev smiled at her and said:

"It is time for you to eat properly. All that rabbit food isn't good for you, as I already told you a thousand times."

"I don't want to gain weight," Alisha said through clenched teeth. "This is very bad."

"Women and diets," Zeynep sighed, earning a glare from Emmanuelle who was eating a carrot. "I am afraid that I will never understand that."

"Of course you won't," Natalya laughed. "You aren't a girl, are you?"

Zeynep looked horrified by just the thought of it, making everyone laugh even harder than they had done before. Ginny knew that they were attracting attention to themselves but she didn't care about that as much as she should have. Finally she put her head in her hands and started to laugh hysterically, making other students swivel around in their seats to look at the small group of Slytherins.

"Ow, my stomach," Marita groaned as she looked up to the ceiling. "I think that it is the weather doing this to me. If my father knew about this he would stare at me in disbelief before transferring me to Durmstrang."

"Durmstrang? If only you had gone there straight away," Natalya sighed and then continued with an icy undertone present in her voice. "You're _only_ half and half, Rita, just like me. Stop being such an arrogant person all the time, it is very annoying."

"My blood's better than yours, Romanov," Marita hissed. "Stop talking, little girl, because you don't know anything about me _or_ my family."

"I do," Zeynep said as he came to Natalya's defense. "Your father's family is just like the Blacks and the Potters once were: pure blooded prats with an arrogance to match You-Know-Who's."

Marita's eyes flickered with hatred for a moment before she looked down at her plate. Natalya gave a small indication of thanks to Zeynep, who nodded curtly and grabbed another chicken wing. Silence returned after that until Verice sighed and said:

"I wish that we could stop doing this. Blood doesn't count, how _many_ times do I have to tell you that? And yet here you are, going on and on about whose blood is better and what families of blood other people can be compared to. I wish that you would just give that topic a rest because we all have wizards and witches in our family even though some of us are half bloods."

"My blood still counts higher than _hers_," Marita said with a slightly raised voice, pointing at Natalya. "I don't care about your blood ties, Verice Walters, because I know that you are pure. But Lya's, on the other hand..."

"For your information: my mother's blood ties run right back to the Tsar of Russia," Natalya replied angrily. "I wanted to give the topic a rest, but somebody obviously needed to point out to you that your arrogance is going over the top. And stop using my nickname because I only want my _friends_ to call me Lya."

"Fine with me," Marita shrugged. "I don't need your friendship anyway."

"Can we stop now?" Ginny asked suddenly. "I am getting tired of all the bickering and the arguments, which include discussions about blood ties. It is Christmas, in case you hadn't realized."

They didn't talk much for the remainder of the meal until people started to leave the Great Hall to go to their common rooms. Marita was one of the first to leave, together with Pansy Parkinson, but Ginny stayed behind to talk to Draco and Zeynep about Quidditch. They left after a while but not before seeing to their utter horror that Crabbe and Goyle were still pigging out at the very end of the table.

They found the common room in complete and utter silence even though the Slytherins were conversing quietly with each other in the high-backed chairs those conversations didn't carry around so that the whole room could hear what they were talking about. Ginny, Draco, and Natalya seated themselves on one of the couches nearby while Zeynep went to his classmates to talk about the upcoming OWLs. 

They had sat there quietly for a couple of minutes until Draco announced that he was going to look for his cronies, leaving Natalya and Ginny to talk about typical girl things. It took a while for Draco to return, so that Pansy was already fretting over another attack when he came back with Crabbe and Goyle in tow.

"I can show them the clipping, can't I?" he asked Ginny after Crabbe and Goyle seated themselves. "After all, it is not like I am going to insult every single member of your family."

"You can show them," Ginny responded softly. "They would have found out for themselves anyway sooner or later."

Draco disappeared to the dorms, only to return with a clipping cut out of the Daily Prophet. He handed it over to Crabbe, who laughed shortly and then handed it over to Goyle. After Goyle had read it he gave it back to Draco with a forced laugh. 

"Mum couldn't have set the family ghoul on them," Ginny smiled. "It doesn't take our orders. And dad shouldn't be tinkering with Muggle artefacts anyway."

Crabbe's face contorted with fury, making Ginny look at him in surprise. He muttered something about a stomach-ache, which didn't come as a surprise at all while Draco continued as he seated himself:

"I suppose that Dumbledore is trying to hush those attacks up. Father's always said that old Dumbledore is the worst thing that ever happened to this place. That is a load of crap seeing as Dumbledore is very loyal to our House."

"People actually think that it is one of us this time," Natalya said softly. "Dumbledore would believe us if we told him we don't know anything."

"You must know something," Goyle said. "I mean..."

"I know what you meant," Ginny replied. "Everyone in the school, including Saint Potter and my very stupid brother, thinks that one of us is the Heir. But that's ridiculous!"

"If we knew who it was we would tell Snape or The Zeppo," Draco continued. "As I have already told you a million times, Goyle, I don't know who the Heir _is_!"

"If Harry and Ron believe others, so be it," Zeynep added as he seated himself next to Natalya, who leaned against his shoulder. "I don't like that Weasel anyway, with what he has done to our Ginny and all."

"What has he done?" Crabbe asked stupidly. "Nothing serious, I hope?"

"No," Ginny sighed heavily. "He just doesn't forgive me for getting into Slytherin, and it hurts me. I thought that I knew him, I thought that he would still like me, but how wrong I was in the end..."

Crabbe and Goyle jumped up suddenly and said something about a medicine for Crabbe's stomach before they left in a hurry, leaving the others behind. Natalya sighed, closed her eyes and soon fell asleep with Zeynep's arm around her while Draco and Ginny talked quietly.

_Something strange was going on..._

*******

St Mungo's Hospital For Magical Maladies, London.

"And?"

Catherine hopped up and down as she looked at the doctor, who shook his head slowly. Gudrun walked over to Catherine and asked:

"Is she dead?"

"It will only be a matter of minutes before she is, yes. You may go and see her one last time, if you wish."

The two friends made their way down to Mel's chamber, Catherine with tears streaming down her cheeks, and seated themselves next to the friend they would soon lose. Mel looked peaceful, although her face was as white as the sheets and her breathing became irregular.

"This is it," Gudrun said softly. "Now it is just the two of us, and Shanna."

"Not yet!"

Catherine jumped up as Mel mumbled something and opened her eyes. They were bloodshot, but they had an unearthly gleam to them that suggested that she was alive. Her breathing was regular and she had a hint of a smile on her face.

"Hey, you two," she croaked. "How are you doing?"

"Mel?" Catherine asked in disbelief. "They said you were..."

"Going to die, so I heard," their friend laughed. "But it takes more than a vision to kill a Smith, you know."

"How did you survive?"

Gudrun asked quietly and Mel smiled at her. The doctor and the nurse came rushing in at that point because they had heard their patient laugh and talk, drowning out any further questions by exclamations about a miracle.

"I got some help from an old friend," Mel said to Gudrun as the nurse checked her temperature. "Lily obviously didn't want me to die."

"I am glad to hear it," Catherine said and relaxed completely. "But what did you say about a second Heir to Slytherin?"

"When I am out of here I shall tell you everything," was the reply. "That's a promise."

*******

Hogwarts.

There came an abrupt end to the festivities as Hermione Granger went to the hospital wing and stayed there for several weeks. Zeynep assured the Slytherins that there hadn't been another attack, but that it was just a spell or potion gone wrong. 

Ginny had stopped writing in her diary for a while now, but she picked it up one last time to say goodbye to the friend who had betrayed her and lied to her. And as she was walking towards a bathroom that was out of order she scribbled her farewell on the pages.

**_I am going to flush you down a toilet, Tom._**

**You cannot do that; my influence is too strong.**

So you finally admit it, don't you? I have been the one attacking everyone, thanks to you. Way to go, Riddle.

Back to calling me Riddle, I see. You can run, little Virginia, but you can't hide...

Who says that I am going to run? Goodbye, Riddle, I won't miss you.

**You won't miss me?**

No, I won't.

She flushed the diary down the toilet and could have sworn that she heard someone scream inside her mind, before she walked out of the room again and smiled. And this time it was a smile that suggested victory and not defeat...

**~*~**

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